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GAA16CA109

2016-01-15 · Hooper Bay, Alaska, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport HPB

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to identify the runway, resulting in the airplane touching down a few feet to the right of the runway.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that he aligned the airplane on final approach with what "appeared" to be the runway with a small snow berm on both the left and right sides. The pilot further reported that the left main landing gear touched down first, and then the airplane came to an "abrupt" stop a few feet to the right of the runway. A postaccident examination of the airframe reviled substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that he aligned the airplane on final approach with what "appeared" to be the runway with a small snow berm on both the left and right sides. The pilot further reported that the left main landing gear touched down first, and then the airplane came to an "abrupt" stop a few feet to the right of the runway. A postaccident examination of the airframe reviled substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.   Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Identification/recognition-Pilot - C
  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Pilot - C
  • — Environmental issues-Operating environment-Airport facilities/design-Airport lighting-Effect on operation
  • — Environmental issues-Operating environment-Airport facilities/design-Runway markings/signage-Effect on operation

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2016_GAA16CA109.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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