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Atlas / NTSB / ANC15CA068

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event ANC15CA068

2015-08-30 Skwentna, Alaska, United States Airport · PVT None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N59180

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

CESSNA 180B

Year of manufacture

1980 · 35 years old at event

Engine

CONT MOTOR O 470R (230 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

20130705

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A7A4A7

Registrant of record

KENNEDY JARED W

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's excessive use of brakes during the landing roll, which resulted in a nose over.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that while landing his tundra tire-equipped, tailwheel airplane at a remote airstrip, he encountered light windshear on short final. The airplane subsequently touched down harder than expected and bounced. In an effort to recover from the bounce, the pilot applied forward elevator control. After the main wheels were firmly on the ground, he applied aft elevator control and brake pressure, which resulted in the airplane nosing over and sustaining substantial damage to the rudder, vertical stabilizer, wings and right lift strut. The pilot stated that there were no preaccident mechanical anomalies or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that while landing his tundra tire-equipped, tailwheel airplane at a remote airstrip, he encountered light windshear on short final. The airplane subsequently touched down harder than expected and bounced. In an effort to recover from the bounce, the pilot applied forward elevator control. After the main wheels were firmly on the ground, he applied aft elevator control and brake pressure, which resulted in the airplane nosing over and sustaining substantial damage to the rudder, vertical stabilizer, wings and right lift strut. The pilot stated that there were no preaccident mechanical anomalies or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Landing gear system-Brake-Incorrect use/operation - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Surface speed/braking-Incorrect use/operation - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2015_ANC15CA068.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.