Amateur-built Merlin GT accident near Kenai, Alaska, September 12, 2004
On September 12, 2004, a amateur-built Merlin GT, registered N354B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kenai, Alaska. 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 inadequate compensation for wind conditions during the landing roll, which resulted in an in-flight collision with terrain during the subsequent aborted landing. A factor associated with the accident was a gusty wind condition.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 12, 2004
- Place
- Kenai, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Merlin GT
- Registration
- N354B · registry record · serial MB-99
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private pilot of the experimental airplane elected to land with a quartering tailwind to meld in with traffic. He said the airplane bounced on the initial touchdown, and upon touching down the second time, a gust of wind from the left and behind, lifted the left wing and the airplane became airborne. He applied full power to abort the landing, but the airplane settled and impacted the runway, collapsing the landing gear and damaging the left wing.
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; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 294 hours in all; 127 in this make and model; 43 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PAEN Kenai AK
- Destination: Kenai AK
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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.