SEWARD, AK, USA
N8841Y
Piper PA-18
The commercial certificated pilot was landing on a remote beach to assess damage to a disabled airplane at the same location. The pilot said he landed in the area where a high tide had receded. During the landing roll, the main landing gear tires entered soft sand, and the airplane nosed over. The airplane received damage to the propeller, the left wing lift strut, and the rudder.
On August 16, 1999, about 1830 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Piper PA-18 airplane, N8841Y, sustained substantial damage during a landing at a beach on Montague Island, about 58 miles east of Seward, Alaska. The area, known as Patton Bay, is located at latitude 59 degrees, 55 minutes north, and longitude 147 degrees, 30 minutes west. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight when the accident occurred. The airplane was operated by the pilot. The commercial certificated pilot, and the sole passenger, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight originated at the Lake Hood Strip, Anchorage, Alaska, about 1700. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on August 18, 1999, the pilot reported he was landing on the beach to assess damage to a disabled airplane at the same location. The pilot said he landed in the area where a high tide had receded. During the landing roll, the main landing gear tires entered soft sand, and the airplane nosed over. The airplane received damage to the propeller, the left wing lift strut, and the rudder.
The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for landing. A factor was soft sand.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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