Amateur-built STORCH SS-MK4 accident near Anchorage, Alaska, September 28, 2001
On September 28, 2001 at about 9:45 pm local time, a amateur-built STORCH SS-MK4, registered N69UP, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Merrill Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control and an inadvertent ground loop/swerve during the landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 28, 2001 · about 9:45 pm local time · cases in 2001
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Merrill Field · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built STORCH SS-MK4
- Registration
- N69UP · registry record · serial 052
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private certificated pilot/owner was landing a tailwheel-equipped experimental/homebuilt airplane. He was seated in the front seat, and a pilot rated passenger was seated in the rear seat. During the landing roll, the airplane began to skid to the right and then departed the right edge of the paved runway. The left main landing gear assembly separated from the fuselage, and the left wing struck the ground. The wing had wrinkling of the upper metal surface at the outboard end, sustaining damage to the rear spar and wing ribs.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PAMR Anchorage AK at 4:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 4,000 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 334° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.57 inHg
- Observation at 5:40 pm from PAMR
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N69UP on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Rotax 912 241 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Merrill Field · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,932 since 1982 · 825 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,142 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC01LA150.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.