Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The pilot's inadequate compensation for the gusty crosswind conditions. Factors associated with the accident were the wind gusts and crosswind.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On April 30, 1997, about 1215 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Piper PA-12 airplane, N4076M, sustained substantial damage while landing at a remote beach site located about 34 miles southwest of Dillingham, Alaska. The solo commercial certificated pilot was not injured. The local, 14 CFR Part 91 flight operated in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The flight departed Dillingham about 1150.
During a telephone conversation with an NTSB investigator on May 1, the pilot related he was landing to the northwest, with a quartering right headwind. During the landing roll, a wind gust lifted the right wing, and the left wing and left elevator struck the ground. The left wing and left side of the elevator received substantial damage.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# ANC97LA064