# NTSB ANC97LA157: Cessna 180, N4900A, King Salmon, AK, September 30, 1997 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: September 29, 1997, 18:00 local (Sep 30, 1997, 02:00 UTC) - Place: King Salmon, AK - Coordinates: 58.750499, -156.540878 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=58.7505&lon=-156.5409&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report July 28, 1999 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 3074 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC97LA157 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/3074/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC97LA157 ## Probable cause The distorted/misaligned main landing gear, and an improper maintenance repair of the main landing gear. A factor associated with the accident was rough and uneven terrain. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Airframe/component/system failure/malfunction, takeoff - landing gear,main gear - distorted (cause) - maintenance,major repair - improper (cause) - terrain condition - rough/uneven (contributing factor) - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - directional control - not possible, pilot in command - Main gear collapsed, landing - roll - Nose over, landing - roll ## Analysis The airplane departed a rough, rocky, gravel bar. During the subsequent landing roll at the pilot's gravel strip, the plane veered to the right. As the plane decelerated, full left rudder and brake input by the pilot did not maintain directional control. The airplane departed the right side of the strip, the left main landing gear separated, and the airplane nosed over. Inspection revealed that the right main landing gear was canted ten degrees to the right, and had been installed using 'Cherry Max' rivets instead of the required solid rivets. ## Factual narrative On September 29, 1997, at 1800 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire equipped, Cessna 180 airplane, N4900A, sustained substantial damage when it nosed over on a landing strip at the Kejulik River Lodge, fifty-seven miles southeast of King Salmon, Alaska, at position 57-51 degrees north latitude, 155-48 degrees west longitude. The commercial certificated pilot and the one passenger were uninjured. The airplane was in support of a hunting and fishing lodge. The flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91, as a local flight from the Kejulik River Lodge to check on hunting clients. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and a company VFR flight plan was filed. The pilot reported that during the landing roll at his 900 feet long, by 20 feet wide, private airstrip, the airplane began to drift right. The pilot stated that as airspeed decreased, he applied full left rudder and brake. The right drift became uncontrollable, and the airplane departed the right side of the airstrip. The left main landing gear subsequently failed, and the airplane nosed over. Postaccident inspection revealed that the right main landing gear was canted ten degrees outboard, and there were popped rivets surrounding the right gear leg. The mechanic who repaired the airplane stated that the rivets which had been used to hold the gear structure in place were "Cherry Max" rivets, instead of the required solid rivets. The landing strip from which the airplane had last departed was described by the pilot as rough and rocky. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N4900A](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4900A), registered now, S/N 32297, built 1956 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 180 - Registry model: [Cessna 180](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-180) (registry code 2072602) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental O-470 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (registry code 17026, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 180-32297 - Airframe hours: 6395 - Engines: Continental O-470-K 230 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Business, Part 91 - Registered owner: Philip L. Shoemaker - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, August 7, 1997 - Departed: BEAR CREEK RIVR, AK - Destination: KEJULIK RIVER, AK - Flight plan: Company VFR - Airport: Kejulik River Lodge, runway 36, 900 × 20 ft, gravel ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 48; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, single-engine sea, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 9,200 total, 1,500 in this make and model, 9,000 as pilot in command, 100 in the last 90 days, 30 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: calm - Visibility: 30 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 5,000 ft broken - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 19970930029389A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970930029389A), Sep 30, 1997: Cessna 180, King Salmon, AK, Substantial damage. Crashed on landing, other circumstances unknown. (.4)the airplane departed a rough, rocky, gravel bar. During the subsequent landing roll at the pilot's gravel… ## Other investigations on N4900A (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB CHI77FEV32](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI77FEV32), Jul 1, 1977: Cessna 180 (N4900A), Champain, IL, substantial damage From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.