Amateur-built DHC-2 accident near Talkeetna, Alaska, May 11, 2008
On May 11, 2008 at about 7:57 pm local time, a amateur-built DHC-2, registered N323KT, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Talkeetna, Alaska (Talkeetna airport). It was a positioning 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 inadvertent activation of the main landing gear brakes during the recovery from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 11, 2008 · about 7:57 pm local time
- Place
- Talkeetna, Alaska · Talkeetna · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-2
- Registration
- N323KT · no longer on the register · serial 1022
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial certificated pilot was landing a wheel ski-equipped airplane at the conclusion of a positioning flight on a hard surface runway. The director of operations for the operator reported that the airplane bounced on the right main landing gear wheel during the initial flare/touchdown. As the airplane made runway contact with both main wheels a second time, the wheels appeared to be locked, producing skid marks on the runway. The airplane nosed down, and the propeller struck the runway. The airplane fell back onto the tailwheel, which resulted in a broken tailwheel strut, and structural buckling of the aft fuselage bulkhead. The director of operations reported that the airplane did not have a mechanical malfunction, and said that the pilot may have had his feet on the brakes when the airplane touched down the second time.
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
What happened, in order
- Hard landing during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
- Nose over/nose down during landing (flare/touchdown)
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Brake › Unneccessary use/operation
- Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Fuselage › Bulkheads (main fuselage) › Damaged/degraded
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,000 hours in all; 1,600 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney R-985-AN-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Rust'S Flying Service Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: Kahiltna Base AK
- Destination: PATK Talkeetna AK
- Runway 18, 3,500 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.62 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 pm from PATK
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.
Other NTSB records under N323KT 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.