Piper J3 accident near Tyonek, Alaska, September 23, 2007
On September 23, 2007 at about 3:00 am local time, a Piper J3, registered N5050R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tyonek, 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for takeoff, which resulted in an encounter with soft terrain and a loss of control during the takeoff roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 23, 2007 · about 3:00 am local time
- Place
- Tyonek, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper J3 · all J3s on the register
- Registration
- N5050R · registry record · serial 15301
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private certificated pilot was departing toward the east from a remote airstrip on a Title 14, CFR Part 91, local area flight. The airstrip was about 600 feet long and about 15 feet wide. During the takeoff roll, the pilot reported that the airplane's left main landing gear tire encountered soft conditions along the left edge of the airstrip. The airplane pulled to the left and departed the left edge of the airstrip, collided with high brush, and overturned. The airplane received structural damage to the left wing spar and the right wing lift strut.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 257 hours in all; 205 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Tyonek AK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 09
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 |
Other NTSB records under N5050R the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 ANC07CA107.