Reims Aviation F406 incident near Nome, Alaska, March 9, 2005
On March 9, 2005 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Reims Aviation F406, registered N6591R, suffered minor damage in an incident near Nome, Alaska (Nome airport). It was a positioning 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 failure of the nose gear up lock actuator bracket during the landing approach due to fatigue cracking, which resulted in a nose wheel up landing. A factor associated with the incident is the mechanical binding of the nose wheel locking mechanism.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 9, 2005 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Nome, Alaska · Nome · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Reims Aviation F406
- Registration
- N6591R · no longer on the register · serial F406-0054
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airline transport certificated pilot of the Title 14, CFR Part 91, positioning flight reported getting an unsafe nose gear indication prior to landing, and was unable to extend the nose gear. He landed the airplane with the nose wheel retracted. An inspection of the nose landing gear up lock actuator bracket by the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, revealed that both the left and right sides of the bracket had fatigue cracks that propagated from the top of each side to the top of a lightening hole near the center of each side. The lower portion of the bracket had distorted, changing its position relative to the nose wheel up lock mechanism, which rendered the up lock unable to disengage. Maintenance records indicated compliance with inspection guidelines for the affected area by the operator. The pilot reported that there were no other mechanical problems with the airplane prior to the incident.
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,360 hours in all; 360 in this make and model; 167 in the last 90 days; 57 in the last 30 days; 3,560 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,450 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, February 1, 2005; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 9,360 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-112 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SVA Savoonga AK at 9:45 pm
- Destination: PAOM Nome AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 02, 5,576 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 020° at 14 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 16°F (-9°C), dew point 3°F (-16°C)
- Altimeter: 29.21 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from PAOM
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.