Accident Details
On July 14, 2014, at approximately 0930 Alaska daylight time, a Cessna 180H airplane, registration N9083M, sustained substantial damage during a landing on a beach on Montague Island, about 60 miles east of Seward, Alaska. The private pilot was operating the aircraft as a visual flight rules (VFR) flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91. The flight had departed Wolf Lake Airport in Palmer, Alaska, at about 0835. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan had been filed. Both the pilot and the sole passenger were not injured.
Pilot Report
In a written report to the National Transportation Safety Board dated July 20, the pilot stated that he was landing on the beach at Patton Bay on the east side of Montague Island. Upon touchdown, the airplane bounced slightly before settling on the right main landing gear. The pilot applied left aileron in an effort to correct for the right-wing-low landing, but the right wing continued to descend. The right main wheel then separated from the gear leg, and the airplane slid along the surface, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing and fuselage.
Postaccident Examination
A postaccident examination conducted by the pilot revealed that the right main landing gear axle had separated from the gear leg. The axle and its four attaching bolts were sent to the NTSB's Materials Laboratory in Washington, D.C., for examination. A Senior Safety Board Materials Engineer reported that the two forward attachment bolts were bent slightly aft and exhibited longitudinal wear marks near the end of the threaded section, with helical strips of metal present near the middle of the threaded section. The two aft bolts were bent aft, and the fractured surfaces were consistent with an overstress fracture. A complete copy of the NTSB's materials laboratory factual report is included in the public docket for this accident.