No fatalities

22 Mar 2020: CESSNA 175 A — Soldotna, AK

Soldotna, AK, United States

On 22 Mar 2020, a CESSNA 175 A was involved in an aviation accident near Soldotna, AK. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's unintentional selection of the wrong landing surface, which was covered with 2 ft of snow and resulted in a nose-over. 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 pilot landed on a snow-covered ski strip instead of the intended runway, causing the nose wheel to dig in and the airplane to nose over, resulting in substantial wing damage.

Accident Details

The pilot reported that the surface of the airport was covered with approximately 6 inches of fresh snow on the day of the accident. During the approach to land, the pilot lined up with what he believed was the correct runway, reduced speed, and applied flaps.

Upon touchdown, the nose wheel of the wheel-equipped airplane dug into the snow, causing the aircraft to nose over. The pilot later stated that he had unintentionally landed on the ski strip, where the snow had accumulated to about 24 inches, rather than the intended runway.

Damage

The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing as a result of the nose-over event.

Pilot Report

The pilot's account indicates he was unaware of misidentifying the landing area until after the accident. No other factors were mentioned in the pilot's report.

Contributing factors

PilotEffect on operationPitch control — Not attained/maintained