- Date
- September 23, 1997, 17:05 local (Sep 24, 1997, 00:05 UTC)
- Place
- Hawthorne, NV
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N82259Piper PA-18-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 10, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970924028209A
- Case key
- 29907
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 inadequate compensation for the existing wind condition and his subsequent failure to maintain directional control.
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 reported that he made a radio call on the CTAF frequency for airport advisories, but that there was no response. He overflew the airport and observed the windsock showing no wind. He entered left traffic for runway 10. As the aircraft slowed after touchdown, a gust of wind or dust devil caused the aircraft to turn radically to the right. The aircraft started to ground loop and he added full power to recover. The aircraft departed the runway on a stable heading and collided with a fence.
Factual narrative
On September 23, 1997, at 1705 hours Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-18-150, N82259, veered off runway 10, contacted a chain link fence with the landing gear and came to rest inverted while landing at the Hawthorne, Nevada, airport. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, and the co-owner/pilot and one passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed for the personal flight, and no flight plan was filed. The flight had originated from the Jackpot, Nevada, airport at 1400 on the day of the accident.
The pilot reported that he attempted a radio call on the Hawthorne CTAF frequency for airport advisories, but that there was no response. He stated that he overflew the airport and observed the windsock showing no wind. He entered left traffic for runway 10. The pilot reported that as the aircraft slowed after touchdown, a gust of wind or dust devil caused the aircraft to turn radically to the right. The aircraft started to ground loop and he added full power to recover from the ground loop. The aircraft departed the runway on a "stable heading and clipped [a] short fence." He reported no mechanical problems with the aircraft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N82259
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-7909084
- Airframe hours
- 580
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Eric D. Pedersen
- Registered owner
- Signal Alarm Company
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 1, 1997 · 24 hours before
- Departed
- 06U · Jackpot, NV
- Destination
- HTH
- Airport
- HTH · Hawthorne Muni, runway 10, 4,800 × 100 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
- 41
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight engineer, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 10,000 total · 450 in this make and model · 8,000 as pilot in command · 255 in the last 90 days · 85 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.