Cessna 180 accident near Port Alsworth, Alaska, June 21, 2000
On June 21, 2000 at about 1:30 am local time, a Cessna 180, registered N3229D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Port Alsworth, Alaska (Miller Creek airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The fatigue failure of the left main landing gear leg at the main landing gear axle attachment bolt holes.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 21, 2000 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Port Alsworth, Alaska · Miller Creek · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180 · all 180s on the register
- Registration
- N3229D · no longer on the register · serial 32027
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was landing on his 1,200 feet long by 100 feet wide gravel airstrip. He stated to the NTSB investigator-in-charge that as soon as the airplane touched down, the left landing gear leg dug into the ground, and the airplane nosed over. The left landing gear strut was missing the lower four inches, fracturing at the main landing gear axle attachment bolt holes. The left wheel assembly was located 200 feet from the wreckage. The pilot indicated the airplane had wheel-ski assemblies installed until one month prior to the accident. The lower section of the fractured landing gear leg was inspected at the NTSB materials laboratory on August 16, 2000. The four corners of the fractured bolt holes showed fatigue cracks starting from corrosion pits. Large amounts of corrosion pitting and oxidation were noted on the surface of the gear leg adjacent to the origin of the cracks.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 20,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 20,000 as pilot in command; 1,500 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,854 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 15, 2000; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MRI Anchorage AK at 7:00 pm
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 23, 1,200 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.