- Date
- December 14, 2017, 13:23 local (22:23 UTC)
- Place
- Kwigillingok, AK
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8209CPiper PA 32R
- Defining event
- Landing: Landing area undershoot
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 5, 2018
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20171214023089A
- Case key
- 96502
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s decision to land with the sun in his eyes, which resulted in a short landing.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
According to the pilot, he landed on runway 15 instead of runway 33 because he did not want to make a 180° turn and taxi back on the runway. He reported that, when he turned to final, the sun was in his eyes and the airplane landed short. During landing, the right main landing gear collided with "deep snow" during the flare, and the airplane veered to the right and collided with a snow berm. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right-wing spar, horizontal stabilizer and the fuselage. The pilot reported that this accident could have been prevented if he had used runway 33 and not had the sun in his eyes during landing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
According to the pilot, he landed on runway 15 instead of runway 33 because he did not want to make a 180° turn and taxi back on the runway. He reported that, when he turned final the sun was in his eyes and the airplane landed short. During landing, the right main landing gear collided with "deep snow" during the flare, and the airplane veered to the right and collided with a snow berm. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right-wing spar, horizontal stabilizer and the fuselage. Per the National Transportation Safety Board's Pilot Aircraft Accident Report, the pilot identified in the Owner Safety Recommendation section, that this accident could have been prevented if he had used runway 33, and not had the sun in his eyes during landing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8209C
- Reported as
- Piper PA 32R (300)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32R-7680082
- Built
- 1975
- Airframe hours
- 12,128.6
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-KIA50, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Paklook AIR, doing business as Yute Commuter Service
- Registered owner
- Renfro, Michael W.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 5, 2017
- Departed
- ABE · Bethel, AK
- Destination
- GGV · Kwigillingok, AK
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
- Airport
- GGV · Kwigillingok, runway 15, 1,835 × 40 ft, snow
- Equipment
- Auto-pilot, Handheld GPS, Stall warning system
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 72
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor, Airline transport, Foreign
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- November 20, 2017
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 21,860 total · 350 in this make and model · 21,115 as pilot in command · 185.8 in the last 90 days · 9.6 in the last 30 days · 1.5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 14 °F, dew point 12 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.53 inHg
- Observed at
- PAKI, 26 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 14, 2018, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.1 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.