- Date
- February 16, 2002, 10:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Beatty, NV
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N9299DPiper PA-18-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20020216002329A
- Case key
- 54242
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 failed to maintain control of the airplane.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings when the airplane started to drift to the right. He applied left rudder but felt that was ineffective. He touched the left heel brake and the airplane immediately nosed over resulting in substantial damage. The pilot said the airplane had a 30.5-gallon fuel tank in each wing. The right tank was 1/2 full and the left tank was 3/4 full. The pilot thought the right brake must have grabbed when he touched the left brake. He thought the fuel must have sloshed forward and caused the nose to drop. The pilot plans to replace the heel brakes with toe brake pedals, and replace the fuel tanks with 12-gallon tanks.
Factual narrative
On February 16, 2002, about 1030 Pacific standard time, a Piper PA-18-150, N9299D, nosed over during landing at Beatty, Nevada. The private pilot/owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The personal local flight departed Beatty about 1000. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.
The pilot said he was practicing touch-and-go landings. On the accident landing, he landed on centerline and the airplane started to drift to the right. He applied left rudder but felt that was ineffective. He touched the left heel brake and the airplane immediately nosed over. The pilot said the airplane had a 30.5-gallon fuel tank in each wing. The right tank was 1/2 full and the left tank was 3/4 full. The pilot thought the right brake must have grabbed when he touched the left brake. He thought the fuel must have sloshed forward and caused the nose to drop. The pilot plans to replace the heel brakes with toe brake pedals, and replace the fuel tanks with 12-gallon tanks.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9299D
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-6606
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A3B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Charles Cook
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 1, 2001
- Departed
- BTY · Beatty, NV
- Airport
- BTY · Beatty, runway 16, 5,600 × 60 ft, asphalt
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
- 69
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 400 total · 100 in this make and model · 1 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 0° at 0 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point 21 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.14 inHg
- Observed at
- LAS, 93 nm away
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 14, 2003, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 334 KB 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.
Other investigations on N9299D · 3
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.