Chickaloon, AK, USA
N5057Y
Piper PA-18
The private certificated pilot was landing a tundra tire and tailwheel-equipped airplane on a remote, snow-covered airstrip. The airstrip was oriented north/south, and was about 1,200 feet long and 50 feet wide. The pilot indicated that the surface of the airstrip was covered by about six inches of snow. The pilot said that during the landing roll, the left main landing gear tire dropped into a rut that was filled with snow. The airplane then ground looped to the left, and departed off the left side of the airstrip, into an area of brush. The airplane's right main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane received damage to the right wingtip, the left wingtip, and the propeller.
On October 17, 2004, about 1130 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Piper PA-18 airplane, N5057Y, sustained substantial damage when it ground looped during the landing roll at a remote airstrip, about 45 miles north of Chickaloon, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The airplane was operated by the pilot. The private certificated pilot, and the sole passenger, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight originated at the Big Lake Airport, Big Lake, Alaska, about 1000, and no flight plan was filed, nor was one required. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on October 18, the pilot reported that he was landing on Sheffield Strip, located along the Big Oshetna River. The airstrip was oriented north/south, and was about 1,200 feet long and 50 feet wide. The pilot indicated that the surface of the airstrip was covered by about six inches of snow. The pilot said that during the landing roll, the left main landing gear tire dropped into a rut that was filled with snow. The airplane then ground looped to the left, and departed off the left side of the airstrip, into an area of brush. The airplane's right main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane received damage to the right wingtip, the left wingtip, and the propeller. The airplane was reported overdue after the accident, and the pilot and passenger spent the night in a cabin at the airstrip. Search personnel located the airplane the following day. A Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1) was not received from the pilot. The aeronautical experience listed in this report was an estimate based on a review of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records on file in the Airman and Medical Records Center located in Oklahoma City. On the pilot's application for a medical certificate, dated July 28, 2003, the pilot indicated that his total aeronautical experience consisted of about 30 hours, all of which were accrued in the previous 6 months.
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane, which resulted in a collision with terrrain during the landing roll. Factors contributing to the accident were a rough/rutted and snow-covered airstrip surface, and an inadvertent ground loop.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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