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LAX83LA323

1983-07-06 · HAWTHORNE, Nevada, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport HTH

Aircraft involved

Factual narrative

THE PILOT STATED THAT UPON ARRIVAL IN THE HAWTHORNE AREA, THE WINDS REPORTED BY UNICOM WERE EXTREMELY VARIABLE AT 27 KTS GUSTING TO 35 KTS. THE UNICOM OPERATOR RECOMMENDED RWY 28, THEN RWY 15 AND FINALLY SETTLED ON RWY 23 AS THE BEST FOR THE WIND CONDITION. EVERYTHING WAS NORMAL THRU THE WHEEL LANDING BUT AT THE TRANSITION TO A THREE POINT ATTITUDE THE WIND SHIFTED APRX 40 DEG TO THE LEFT AND IN AN EFFORT TO AVOID A GROUND LOOP HE WENT OFF THE RUNWAY TO THE RIGHT. JUST AFTER DEPARTING THE RWY, THE RIGHT MAIN WHEEL ENCOUNTERED SOFT SAND WHICH CAUSED THE AIRCRAFT TO NOSE OVER ON ITS BACK. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1983_LAX83LA323.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.