Piper PA-18 accident near Anchorage, Alaska, January 12, 2002
On January 12, 2002 at about 5:32 pm local time, a Piper PA-18, registered N9908D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Merrill Field). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight. Factors in the accident were the student's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing roll, icy runway conditions, and snow-covered terrain along the runway edges.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 12, 2002 · about 5:32 pm local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Merrill Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18 · all PA-18s on the register
- Registration
- N9908D · registry record · serial 18-6949
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The certificated flight instructor was providing instruction to the private pilot/new owner of a tundra tire-equipped, tailwheel airplane. The flight instructor occupied the rear seat of the airplane. The pilot/owner had accrued 66 total flight hours, 14 hours as pilot-in-command, and .5 hours in the accident airplane. Five minutes after takeoff, the student was performing a landing on an asphalt surface runway that had areas of ice along the edges. During the landing roll the airplane began to drift to the right. The instructor applied left rudder, but the airplane departed the right side of the runway into an area of snow. The airplane nosed over and received damage to the propeller, fuselage, and wing lift struts. The right master brake cylinder, installed in the front seat area, was serviced before the flight. A heater hose was installed in the cabin to direct heat into the rear seat area. The instructor reported that the airplane's right brake felt as if it was locked, which she said may have been due to overfilling the brake reservoir, and heating of the brake cylinder by the heater. The instructor cited two previous NTSB reports of brake cylinder locking after extended flight with a heater hose blowing hot air on a brake reservoir. A review of the two previous accidents disclosed airplanes had locked brakes during landing, both within five days of each other in 1997. The previous NTSB accident reports involved two aircraft where a heater hose was directed onto the master brake cylinders after the brake cylinders were serviced. One of the accidents involved 1.5 hours of flight time before landing. The second accident involved 3 hours of flight time before landing. The accident airplane's brake system was not examined postaccident.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 25,266 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 24,535 as pilot in command; 20,800 on instruments
- Last flight review: April 23, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 66 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 14 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 1, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,009 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 1, 2001; 9 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Z41 Anchorage AK at 5:30 pm
- Destination: PAMR Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 06, 4,000 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 028° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,400 ft
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 29.92 inHg
- Observation at 5:35 pm from PAMR
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ANC02LA009.