Cessna 170A N5406C

Summary

On 5 September 2011 at about 21:41 local time, a Cessna 170A registered N5406C, operated by Joseph Gugel, was involved in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

5 September 2011 at 21:41

Classification

Accident

Location

Anchorage, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Lake Hood Airstrip (Z71)

Coordinates

61.1867, -149.9653

Aircraft

Cessna 170A

Registration

N5406C

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Joseph Gugel

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Anchorage → Anchorage

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC11CA095

Nobody was injured.

The fracture of a hydraulic brake line fitting due to incorrect installation of the brake line by the pilot/owner, which resulted in a loss of brake pressure and subsequent loss of directional control during the landing roll.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was landing his tailwheel-equipped airplane on a dry, gravel runway at the conclusion of a local area flight. After landing, the pilot applied the brakes to slow the airplane, and, while depressing both brake pedals, the left brake pedal unexpectedly went to the floor. The airplane swerved to the right, went off the right side of the runway, and nosed over in an area of soft, marshy, wet tundra, sustaining substantial damage to the rudder, left wing, and left aileron. A postaccident examination revealed that a hydraulic brake supply line fitting near the airplane's fuselage had broken, which resulted in a loss of brake pressure to the left brake. The hydraulic brake line was not secured to the landing gear strut as required, which allowed the line to flex and bend at the fitting during flight. The pilot reported that he recently rebuilt the airplane himself.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.