Cessna 185 N5892T

Summary

On 22 September 2016 at about 01:45 local time, a Cessna 185 registered N5892T was involved in an accident near Fairbanks, Alaska, United States. 2 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

22 September 2016 at 01:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Fairbanks, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

63.4828, -146.2847

Aircraft

Cessna 185

Registration

N5892T

Category

Airplane

Year built

1964

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Delta Junction → Delta Junction

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

GAA16CA503

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s failure to recognize he was taking off with a tailwind and his inadequate compensation for taking off with a tailwind, which led to the airplane’s failure to attain a climb and a subsequent forced landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane, he and his passenger waited most of the day for the 30-knot wind to subside before departing the 1,200-ft-long dirt and grass airstrip. He reported that the wind velocity had decreased to 10 knots and that he had calculated that, with the 10-knot headwind, the airplane would rotate about 700 ft down the runway. The pilot monitored the wind via ribbons placed at various locations around the airstrip. During takeoff, the airplane rotated about 700 ft down the runway and climbed to about 8 ft above the ground. The pilot stated that it "then it felt like we lost our lift." The pilot recalled that there wasn't enough runway remaining to land and that there was a brush-covered bank at the departure end of the runway. The airplane started to settle to the ground, and although operating at full power and on the cusp of a stall, they cleared the bank. Beyond the bank, the pilot landed the airplane on a short sand bar, but the airplane overran the sand bar and impacted several large rocks. After exiting the airplane, the pilot noticed that he had departed with an 8- to 10-knot tailwind. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left-wing strut, the aileron, the horizontal stabilizer and the elevator. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies with the airframe or engine that would have prevented normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.