Piper PA-18-150 N7780Y

Summary

On 4 January 2013 at about 16:15 local time, a Piper PA-18-150 registered N7780Y, operated by Keller Matthew C, was involved in an accident near Palmer, 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

4 January 2013 at 16:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Palmer, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

61.9053, -148.9236

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-150

Registration

N7780Y

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Keller Matthew C

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Palmer → Palmer

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC13CA019

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for an off-airport landing, which resulted in a ground-loop.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot departed from a private airstrip in a wheel/ski-equipped airplane on a local area flight. During the flight, he elected to land on an ice-covered, frozen lake, and, due to the bare ice conditions, he elected to land in a wheel configuration instead of ski configuration. During the landing roll, as the airplane slowed, the left tire broke through a layer of thin ice atop several inches of water, and the airplane veered left. The pilot applied engine power in an attempt to correct the veer, but the airplane subsequently ground-looped to the left, sustaining substantial damage to the empennage and fuselage. The pilot reported no preaccident malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.