Piper PA18 N4900C

Summary

On 3 December 2020 at about 01:00 local time, a Piper PA18 registered N4900C, operated by Bradley Rider, was involved in an accident near Juneau, 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

3 December 2020 at 01:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Juneau, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Juneau Intl (JNU)

Coordinates

58.3547, -134.5785

Aircraft

Piper PA18

Registration

N4900C

Category

Airplane

Year built

2013

Engines

1

Operator

Bradley Rider

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Gustavus → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC21LA008

Nobody was injured.

The solo student pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during taxi in strong crosswind conditions, which resulted in a loss of control and subsequent impact with a ditch.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The solo student pilot reported that, while taxiing to park, a strong crosswind lifted the right wing and that the airplane then began to roll. He attempted to correct for the roll to no avail, and the airplane subsequently ran off the side of the taxiway and impacted a drainage ditch, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage and right lift struts. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.