Cessna 180 accident near Anchorage, Alaska, July 2, 2006
On July 2, 2006 at about 6:33 pm local time, a Cessna 180, registered N2868K, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska (Lake Hood Strip airport). 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 failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing roll, which resulted in the left wing striking the ground and a runway edge light. Factors contributing to the accident were the pilot's inadvertent application of the right brake, and an inadvertent ground loop.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 2, 2006 · about 6:33 pm local time
- Place
- Anchorage, Alaska · Lake Hood Strip · 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
- N2868K · registry record · serial 18053105
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial certificated pilot reported that he was landing a tailwheel-equipped airplane while conducting a Title 14, CFR Part 91 personal flight. During the landing roll, as the pilot was making a right rudder application, the nose abruptly veered to the right. The pilot reported that the airplane ground looped to the right, and the left wingtip and left aileron struck the ground. The lens covering a runway edge light fixture was also broken. He said that he inadvertently applied the right brake as he was applying the right rudder correction.
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: 820 hours in all; 222 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Z41 Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 31
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- 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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 ANC06CA083.