# NTSB SEA06TA152: Cessna TU206G, N5421X, Lowman, ID, July 28, 2006 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Final report - Date: July 28, 2006, 12:30 local (18:30 UTC) - Place: Lowman, ID - Coordinates: 44.294445, -115.64611 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.2944&lon=-115.6461&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 31, 2007 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 64293 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=SEA06TA152 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/64293/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA06TA152 ## Probable cause The pilot's loss of aircraft control due to a downdraft on short final followed by an uncontrolled descent to a hard landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, landing - flare/touchdown - weather condition - downdraft (cause) - descent - uncontrolled, pilot in command (cause) - Hard landing, landing - flare/touchdown - terrain condition - ground - aircraft control - not possible, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis The pilot was landing on a mountain dirt airstrip which did not have a wind sock on the approach end of the runway. The approach end of the runway terminated in a lake, and the runway proceeded uphill with a 6 percent grade. The pilot said that there was always a "sinker" where the runway meets the water. As the airplane went from over water to over the end of the runway, the pilot said the airplane was "really slammed down", and even with full takeoff power the airplane hit the ground hard. He said the airplane bounced about 20 yards to the right where the right wheel went into a ditch about 2 feet deep. He applied full left aileron, full left rudder, and full left brake. The wheel came out of the ditch, but the empennage "whacked" the ditch berm fairly hard. A Form 337 (major repair) was issued and the following parts were replaced: two skin pieces; two stringers; two frame bulkheads; one access door; and one tailcone assembly doubler. ## Factual narrative On July 28, 2006, at approximately 1230 mountain daylight time, a Cessna TU206G, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at Deadwood Reservoir Airstrip (ID86), near Lowman, Idaho. The commercial pilot and his passenger were not injured. The airplane was being operated under contract to the USDA Forest Service by Pioneer Aviation, Inc., Boise, Idaho, as a public use flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country flight that had originated from Boise, Idaho, at approximately 0900. U.S. Forest Service personnel stated that the purpose of the flight was for an aerial survey for forest pest detection. The pilot said that the wind sock at the top of the hill, at the east end of the runway, was not moving, and there was no wind sock at the approach end of the runway. He said the approach was made over the lake and "there is always a sinker" where the runway meets the water. This approach is to runway 06, which has an uphill 6 percent grade. As the airplane went from over water to over the end of the runway, the pilot said the airplane was "really slammed down," and even with full takeoff power the airplane hit the ground hard. The pilot said the airplane bounced about 20 yards to the right where the right wheel went into a ditch about 2 feet deep. He applied full left aileron, full left rudder, and full left brake. The wheel came out of the ditch, but the empennage "whacked" the ditch berm fairly hard. Postaccident examination of photographs and parts replacement list by a Federal Aviation Inspector resulted in a Form 337 (major repair) being requested for the required repair. This form documented the replacement of the following parts: two skin pieces; two stringers; two frame bulkheads; one access door; and one tailcone assembly doubler. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N5421X](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5421X-2007-10-26), registration cancelled 2007-10-26, S/N U20605737, built 1980 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna TU206G - Registry model: [Cessna TU206G](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-tu206g) (registry code 2073357) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental TSIO-520 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-tsio-520-series) (registry code 17040, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: U20605737 - Airframe hours: 7511 - Engines: Continental TSIO-520-M 310 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial observation, Public use - Registered owner: Pioneer Aviation, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, July 1, 2006, 10 hours before - Departed: BOI, Boise, ID - Destination: ID86, Lowman, ID - Flight plan: Company VFR - Airport: ID86, Deadwood Dam Airstrip, runway 06, 1,800 × 50 ft, grass/turf ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 62; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; last flight review June 1, 2006; seat: left; flight hours: 4,200 total, 2,800 in this make and model, 4,100 as pilot in command, 150 in the last 90 days, 100 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 270° at 7 knots, gusting 16 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 84 °F, dew point 30 °F - Altimeter: 30.13 inHg - Observed at: SNT, 32 nm away ## 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 20060728025429A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060728025429A), Jul 28, 2006: Cessna TU206G, Lowman, ID, Substantial damage. (-23) On July 28, 2006, at approximately 1230 mountain daylight time, a Cessna TU206G, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at deadwood reservoir… 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.