N8665Z

On October 17, 2009, about 1330 Alaska daylight time, a Cessna P206C airplane, N8665Z, sustained substantial damage when it collided with a fence and terrain while landing at a private airstrip, about 5 miles west of Palmer, Alaska. The airplane was being operated by the pilot as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal local flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The solo commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated at the Fairview East Airstrip, Palmer, about 1315.

During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on October 22, the pilot said he overran the end of the runway during landing, and collided with a fence and a ditch. He said the nose landing gear broke off, and the propeller struck the ground. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical problems with the airplane prior to the accident. He indicated there was damage to the nose landing gear and propeller.

During an examination of the airplane by the NTSB IIC on October 21, besides the nose gear and propeller damage, structural damage was discovered on the fuselage, aft of the baggage compartment. The certificated aviation mechanic who helped recover the airplane the day of the accident, said the airstrip was about 1,300 feet long, and the airplane touched down about 400 feet down the runway. He said the fuselage damage was due to a steel fencepost that penetrated the fuselage when the airplane collided with the airport's chain link perimeter fence.

In a written statement to the NTSB, the pilot wrote that he should not have landed at that airstrip.