No fatalities

17 Sep 2011: PIPER PA-18-150 — Bethel, AK

Bethel, AK, United States

On 17 Sep 2011, a PIPER PA-18-150 was involved in an aviation accident near Bethel, AK. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's delayed decision to abort the takeoff. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

A floatplane struck the shoreline and sustained substantial left wing damage after the pilot aborted a takeoff on a lake.

Incident Overview

The pilot of a float-equipped airplane reported that during takeoff from a lake, he realized the airplane would not become airborne before reaching the departure end of the lake. He closed the engine throttle in an attempt to abort the takeoff, but the airplane struck the shoreline and came to rest on the tundra adjacent to the lake. The left wing sustained substantial damage.

Weather Considerations

The pilot stated that the automated weather observation from an airport approximately 1 mile south of the lake reported wind from the east-northeast. However, the wind appeared calm on the lake. The pilot made the decision to take off to the west due to the calm wind, and to stay away from aircraft departing to the north from the nearby airport.

Mechanical Status

The pilot indicated there were no mechanical problems with the airplane.

Pilot's Assessment

The pilot noted that the accident could have been prevented if he had aborted the takeoff sooner.

Contributing factors

Causes

Pilot

Other contributing factors

Contributed to outcomeCapability exceeded