# NTSB LAX98LA087: Cessna 195, N4385N, Carefree, AZ, February 12, 1998 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: February 12, 1998, 13:26 local (20:26 UTC) - Place: Carefree, AZ - Coordinates: 33.820426, -111.900505 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.8204&lon=-111.9005&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report February 15, 2001 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 30032 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX98LA087 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/30032/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX98LA087 ## Probable cause The pilot's misjudging the wind direction and his selection of the wrong runway for the landing attempt. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - weather condition - tailwind (cause) - traffic advisory - attempted, pilot in command - wind information - misjudged, pilot in command (cause) - wrong runway - selected, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water collision with object, landing - roll - object - runway light - Nose over, landing - roll ## Analysis While approaching the airport to land, the pilot attempted to obtain advisories and was not successful in obtaining any information after two attempts. He flew over a flag on downwind for runway 06. He said the winds were 'out of the East (from) 270 at approximately 10 mph.' The pilot claimed that after landing he experienced a wind shift which caused the airplane's left main wheel to drop off the edge of the runway and it struck a runway light. The initial police officer on the scene told the Safety Board that it appeared that the airplane landed with the wind instead of into the wind. The FAA Inspector who went to the scene said the pilot landed downwind and that there were residual tire marks from the left main tire as it skidded on the runway. A review of all available weather data from several airports in the local area revealed that the winds at the time of the accident were predominately from the west. ## Factual narrative On February 12, 1998, at 1326 hours mountain standard time, a Cessna 195, N4385N, hit a runway light with the left main wheel and subsequently nosed over during the ground roll following a downwind landing at the Carefree, Arizona, airport. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, and the private pilot and his one passenger were not injured. This segment of the flight originated at Mesa, Arizona, about 26 minutes prior to the crash. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. According to the pilot, he was unable to reach the Unicom operator at the airport after two attempts to obtain an airport advisory. He said he flew over the airport and observed a flag near the downwind side of the approach to runway 06, which indicated that the wind was "out of the east (from) 270." The pilot said right after he touched down, the wind got under the tail of the aircraft and subsequently nosed the airplane over on its back. He stated that after the accident, he noticed that the wind was about 180 degrees opposite from its previous direction. Other witnesses who were at the airport at the time of the crash told the pilot that the winds had been variable all day. The Safety Board interviewed the sheriff's officers who responded to the scene of the accident. According to the deputy who interviewed the pilot, it appeared that the pilot "came in to land with the wind rather than into the wind." He did recall, however, that the pilot told him that the winds were 180 degrees opposite after he touched down on the runway. The pilot stated in his report that he "verifyied winds with the wind sock at mid-field (showing the winds approx. 5-10 kts. out of the east 270 degrees." Additionally, he stated that he experienced a wind shift with a right quartering tailwind gust which caused an immediate swerve to the right edge of the runway. Under the section entitled "Weather Information at the Accident Site," the pilot listed himself as the source of the weather information. He stated that the winds were "SW at 8-10 knots, gusts 10 knots." The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airworthiness Inspector who inspected the wreckage at the request of the Safety Board stated that the pilot landed downwind with about a 10-knot tailwind. He said he found a spot on the runway where the left front tire left skid marks on the pavement before it had departed the runway surface and subsequently struck the runway light. A thorough review of all available Metars from nearby airports by both the FAA and the Safety Board revealed that the winds were predominately from the west. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N4385N](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4385N), registered now, S/N 7019, built 1947 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 195 - Registry model: [Cessna 195B](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-195b) (registry code 2073112) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental W670 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-w670-series) (registry code 17018, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 7019 - Airframe hours: 1618 - Engines: Jacobs 755 B2 275 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Rodney R. Hill - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, April 28, 1997, 39 hours before - Departed: FFZ, FALCON FIELD, AZ - Destination: E18 - Airport: E18, Carefree Skyranch, runway 6, 4,000 × 60 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 49; private; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 943 total, 39 in this make and model, 881 as pilot in command, 50 in the last 90 days, 9 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 270° at 7 knots - Visibility: 40 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 63 °F, dew point 37 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: DVT, 25 nm away 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.