# NTSB ANC98LA161: Piper PA-18, N5697Y, Sleetmute, AK, September 26, 1998 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: September 26, 1998, 13:30 local (21:30 UTC) - Place: Sleetmute, AK - Coordinates: 61.67979, -157.160888 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.6798&lon=-157.1609&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report March 30, 2000 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 44040 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC98LA161 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/44040/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC98LA161 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain directional control. Contributing factors were the gusty crosswind conditions. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, takeoff - roll/run - weather condition - gusts (contributing factor) - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - weather condition - crosswind (contributing factor) ## Analysis The airplane was departing a ridgetop site with a right crosswind gusting to 25 knots. The pilot told the NTSB investigator-in-charge that a gust of wind forced the airplane off the left side of the ridge, and the left wing struck the ground. ## Factual narrative On September 26, 1998, at 1330 Alaska daylight time, a Piper PA-18, tundra tire equipped airplane, N5697Y, sustained substantial damage when it nosed over during takeoff from an off airport landing site, about 55 miles south-southeast of Sleetmute, Alaska. The solo commercial pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was owned and operated by Carl E. Brent, dba Alaska Trophy Connection, of Wasilla, Alaska. The flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 135, as an on demand air taxi flight supporting a hunting lodge. The flight was departing from a ridgetop landing site to transport caribou meat to the Taylor Mountain Mine airstrip, three miles to the northwest. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and a company VFR flight plan was filed. The pilot told the NTSB investigator-in-charge, during a telephone interview on September 27, and wrote in his NTSB Pilot / Operator report, that there was a crosswind from the right, gusting to 25 knots. He said that during the takeoff run, the wind got under the right wing, and the airplane was forced over the left edge of the ridge. The left wing contacted the ground, and the airplane slid to a stop 150 feet below the ridge. ## Aircraft - Registration: N5697Y (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: Piper PA-18 - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18-8293 - Airframe hours: 4291 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-A2B 150 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Part 135 - Registered owner: Carl E. Brent - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, September 22, 1998, 11 hours before - Destination: AK64, TAYLOR MTN MINE, AK - Flight plan: Company VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 40; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: front; flight hours: 3,491 total, 3,084 in this make and model, 3,491 as pilot in command, 211 in the last 90 days, 86 in the last 30 days, 4 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 180° at 15 knots, gusting 25 - Visibility: 50 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 39 °F ## 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 19980926026599A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980926026599A), Sep 26, 1998: Piper PA18150, Sleetmute, AK, Substantial damage. Air taxi crashed on takeoff under unknown circumstances and sustained subs damage.(-23) the airman had approximately 160 lbs of moose meat tied down in the… 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.