Piper PA-18 accident near Ruby, Alaska, September 5, 2000
On September 5, 2000 at about 5:00 am local time, a Piper PA-18, registered N3774Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ruby, Alaska. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadvertent ground loop/swerve during the landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 5, 2000 · about 5:00 am local time
- Place
- Ruby, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18 · all PA-18s on the register
- Registration
- N3774Z · registry record · serial 18-07454
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said he made a wheel landing on an off-airport gravel bar, and during rollout, the airplane's nose swerved to the right. He said when he applied the booster brakes, the nose continued to the right, and the airplane ground looped. The pilot wrote in his report to the NTSB that he didn't know if there was a mechanical problem with the airplane, but that the right brake 'may' have locked up. According to the airplane owner, the pilot was landing on a 1,500 feet long by 100 feet wide gravel bar, and attempted to stop the airplane quickly to make a short turnoff. The winds were calm at the time of the accident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings, and the empennage.
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: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 884 hours in all; 573 in this make and model; 28 in the last 90 days; 28 in the last 30 days; 820 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 39°F (4°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.
Other NTSB records under N3774Z the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.