NTSB DEN89LA139 — 1989-06-17 · BULLFROG, Utah, United States

Current FAA registration · N1846Z

Make / Model: CESSNA 180K
Year of manufacture: 1978 · 11 years old at event
Seats / Engines: 4 seats · 1 engine
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A152CA

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N1846Z Cessna 180K Minor

Probable cause & findings

THE PILOT FAILED TO COMPENSATE FOR WIND CONDITIONS DURING THE LANDING ROLL. THE CROSSWIND WAS CONSIDERED AS A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR. AN UNDERLYING FACTOR TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE PILOT'S LACK OF EXPERIENCE IN PERFORMING CROSSWIND LANDINGS IN THE CESSNA 180.

Factual narrative

THE PILOT WAS LANDING THE TAILWHEEL-EQUIPPED AIRPLANE TO THE NORTH ON A 3500-FOOT, GRAVEL-COVERED, ASPHALT RUNWAY. THE WIND WAS FROM THE WEST AT 5 KNOTS. THE PILOT SAID HE TOUCHED DOWN IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF RUNWAY AND CORRECTED WITH LEFT AILERON FOR 'AN APPARENT LEFT CROSSWIND.' HE LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. IT OVERTURNED IN A DITCH PARALLEL TO THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT REPORTED NO MECHANICAL DIFFICULTIES WITH THE AIRCRAFT. LATER EXAMINATION DISCLOSED THE LEFT MAIN WHEEL TIRE WAS BLOWN. THE PILOT HAD LOGGED A TOTAL OF 18 HOURS IN THE CESSNA 180K, ALL OF WHICH WAS ACQUIRED IN THE PREVIOUS 30-DAY PERIOD. HE HAD LOGGED AN ADDITIONAL 100 HOURS IN OTHER TAILWHEEL-EQUIPPED AIRPLANES. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_DEN89LA139.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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