Accident Details
On November 11, 2011, at approximately 1130 Alaska standard time, a Bellanca 8GCBC airplane, registration N88417, sustained substantial damage when it nosed over during landing about 22 miles south of Delta Junction, Alaska. The airplane was operated by the State of Alaska, Department of Fish and Game, based in Anchorage, Alaska, as a visual flight rules (VFR) public aircraft flight. The solo private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan was active. The flight departed from Chena Marina Airport, Fairbanks, Alaska, at about 1000.
Pilot Account
During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), the pilot reported that the temperature was about 22 degrees Fahrenheit, the runway had not been packed down, and there was a 1-2 inch dusting of snow on the runway. She began aerial game observations at about 1040 and decided to land at approximately 1120 to organize data on the ground. She touched down at stall speed in a three-point configuration. Upon full contact with the ground, the tires immediately dug into the snow, causing the tail of the airplane to rise suddenly and the nose to hit the ground. The airplane skidded for several yards before nosing over.
The pilot stated that based on the airplane's reaction on touchdown and photos of the accident site, she believed the brakes had iced up and locked prior to touchdown, likely from taxiing and takeoff in light, loose snow at Chena Marina. She noted that the accident landing wheel tracks were deep and cut into the underlying grass, while tracks left by two airplanes that landed to provide assistance did not penetrate the shallow snow layer.
The pilot said she was very familiar with the airplane and the landing airstrip and had not experienced any prior mechanical issues or difficulty landing there.
Postaccident Inspection
A postaccident inspection of the brake system by the State's aircraft mechanic revealed no brake anomalies. In a separate conversation with the NTSB IIC, an aircraft mechanic who responded to the accident site reported finding the left brake free and the right brake frozen. He said it is not unusual for brakes to freeze after extended taxiing in deep snow: during taxi, brakes heat and melt snow, which refreezes after the airplane becomes airborne. He examined the brakes after the airplane was recovered and found no mechanical anomalies.