Cessna 180 accident near Sterling, Alaska, May 24, 2006
On May 24, 2006 at about 2:00 am local time, a Cessna 180, registered N4814, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sterling, Alaska. It was a personal 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 pilot's inadequate compensation for a crosswind during the landing roll, which resulted in an on-ground encounter with the runway surface. Factors contributing to the accident were a crosswind, and an inadvertent ground loop.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 24, 2006 · about 2:00 am local time
- Place
- Sterling, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180 · all 180s on the register
- Registration
- N4814 · registry record · serial 32847
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The certificated commercial pilot was landing at a private airstrip at the conclusion of a CFR part 91 personal flight. The airstrip did not have a windsock, but the pilot said he anticipated a right crosswind, and estimated the wind as about 10 knots. He said the airplane touched down, and then bounced slightly. The airplane began to veer to the right, and he attempted to stop the turn by applying left rudder and left brake. The turn continued, and the airplane ground looped to the right, sustaining damage to the left wing, the left horizontal stabilizer, and the left main landing gear.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,350 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 2 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PAMR Anchorage AK
- Destination: Sterling AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 10 knots
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°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 N4814 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.