Tyonek, AK, USA
N2941M
Piper PA-12
The pilot reported he was taking off in his tailwheel airplane from an off-airport site with a direct left crosswind of approximately 12 knots. Shortly after liftoff, a gust of wind pushed the airplane sideways and down. The pilot said he was unable to control or stop the descent, and the airplane collided with a log hidden in the brush. The airplane received structural damage to the fuselage and elevator.
On August 17, 2003, about 1430 Alaska daylight time, a tailwheel-equipped Piper PA-12 airplane, N2941M, received substantial damage when it collided with terrain following a loss of control during takeoff from a remote, off-airport site, located about 12 miles north of Tyonek, Alaska. The Title 14, CFR Part 91 local personal flight operated in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The solo private pilot was not injured. The flight departed Lake Hood Strip, Anchorage, Alaska, about 1100, and was returning to Anchorage at the time of the accident. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge (IIC) on August 17 at 1820, the pilot related that he was attempting to takeoff to the west from an off-airport site adjacent to Olson Creek. He said there was a direct crosswind from the south about 12 knots, and that shortly after becoming airborne, a gust of wind pushed the airplane sideways and down. He reported he was unable to control or stop the descent, and the airplane collided with a log hidden in the brush, damaging the main landing gear, fuselage, and elevator.
The pilot's failure to adequately compensate for wind conditions and maintain aircraft control during the initial climb, which resulted in a loss of control and in-flight collision with terrain. Factors associated with the accident are a crosswind and wind gusts.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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