No fatalities

27 Aug 2019: Piper PA18 150 — Kenai, AK

Kenai, AK, United States

On 27 Aug 2019, a Piper PA18 150 was involved in an aviation accident near Kenai, AK. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing and the subsequent loss of directional control and impact with a tree. 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-equipped airplane sustained substantial damage to its left wing, rudder, and lift strut after impacting brush and a tree during a go-around following a hard landing on an unimproved airstrip.

Accident Details

A tailwheel-equipped airplane experienced a hard landing on an unimproved airstrip, during which it veered left. The pilot then attempted a go-around but the airplane impacted brush and a tree, resulting in substantial damage to the left wing, rudder, and left-wing lift strut.

Pilot Report

The pilot reported that after the airplane landed hard and veered left, he "dumped [his] flaps and attempted to arrest the leftward direction with braking" before applying full power to go around. He stated that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Weather Information

The pilot reported the wind at the accident site as 180° at 10 knots. An airport's automated weather observation station located 30 miles to the southeast reported wind conditions around the time of the accident as 260° at 6 knots. The pilot was landing the airplane to the south.

Damage

The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing, rudder, and left-wing lift strut as a result of impacting brush and a tree during the go-around attempt.

Contributing factors

Landing flare — Not attained/maintainedPilotDirectional control — Not attained/maintainedEffect on operation