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Dragging the landing site goes awry for Alaska pilot

By NTSB · February 20, 2018 ·

The pilot was on a personal cross-country flight to a remote, off-airport site in Sleetmute, Alaska, in a tailwheel-equipped Cessna 180.

He said that before landing he intended to fly a low pass over the snow-covered site to determine the condition of the snowpack, a maneuver commonly known as dragging the landing site.

He said that as the main landing gear wheels touched down atop the frozen layer of crusty snow, the wheels broke through, and the plane nosed over, sustaining substantial damage to the left wing and vertical stabilizer.

Probable cause: The pilot’s decision to make contact with an unsuitable landing surface, resulting in a nose over.

NTSB Identification: ANC16CA014

This February 2016 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.

About NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent federal agency charged by Congress with investigating every civil aviation accident in the United States and significant events in the other modes of transportation, including railroad, transit, highway, marine, pipeline, and commercial space. It determines the probable causes of accidents and issues safety recommendations aimed at preventing future occurrences.

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Comments

  1. Paul says

    February 21, 2018 at 5:30 pm

    A low flyby inspection pass of a runway does not mean getting so close the wheels actually touchdown. That would be an attempted T&G which obviously in this foolish instance resulted in a very close and final inspection of the runway. Stupid is as stupid does!

  2. PeterH says

    February 20, 2018 at 9:33 am

    Very elegant maneuver – I’m sure his insurance company would agree.

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