No fatalities

11 Feb 2018: CESSNA 180 — Mallen Air LLC — Nenana, AK

Nenana, AK, United States

On 11 Feb 2018, a CESSNA 180 UNDESIGNAT operated by Mallen Air LLC was involved in an aviation accident near Nenana, AK. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot’s failure to maintain an adequate approach path to an unimproved airstrip, which resulted in a hard landing short of the airstrip. 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 tailwheel and ski-equipped airplane landed hard and short of a snow-covered airstrip due to windshear and wind gusts, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing.

Accident Details

The pilot of a tailwheel and ski-equipped airplane reported that, during landing on an unimproved, snow-covered airstrip, the aircraft touched down hard and came to rest short of the intended landing area. The pilot attributed the hard landing to windshear and wind gusts.

Post-Impact Sequence

Following the hard landing, the airplane slid on its right side and eventually came to rest on the right wing and right horizontal stabilizer.

Damage Assessment

The accident resulted in substantial damage to the right wing of the airplane.

Pilot Report

The pilot stated that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot also reported that the wind condition at the time of the accident was light and variable at 5 knots and was not gusting.

Contributing factors

Causes

Descent/approach/glide path — Not attained/maintainedPilot

Other contributing factors

Effect on operation