Bellanca 8GCBC accident near Kantishna, Alaska, July 19, 2011
On July 19, 2011, a Bellanca 8GCBC, registered N5043N, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering (low-alt flying) near Kantishna, 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 decision to make contact with an unsuitable landing surface, resulting in a nose over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 19, 2011
- Place
- Kantishna, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 8GCBC · all 8GCBCs on the register
- Registration
- N5043N · no longer on the register · serial 302-79
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was performing a low reconnaissance pass over an area to determine its suitability for landing. He decided to lightly drag the airplane's main landing gear wheels on the landing surface to check for roughness, but the wheels settled into soft terrain, and the airplane nosed over, resulting in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during maneuvering (low-alt flying)
- Nose over/nose down defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surfa › Soft › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,457 hours in all; 1,306 in this make and model; 209 in the last 90 days; 131 in the last 30 days; 2,406 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: January 15, 2011
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 17,556 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 2011; 50 hours since
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 5Z5 Kantishna AK at 6:15 pm
- Destination: Kantishna AK
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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 N5043N 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.