Cessna 180 accident near Naknek, Alaska, May 3, 2016
On May 3, 2016 at about 8:30 pm local time, a 1961 Cessna 180, registered N6479X, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Naknek, Alaska (Naknek 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 overstress fracture and subsequent separation of the left main landing gear axle due to a hard landing, which resulted in the pilot’s inability to maintain directional control of the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 3, 2016 · about 8:30 pm local time · cases in 2016
- Place
- Naknek, Alaska · Naknek · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180, built 1961 · all 180s on the register
- Registration
- N6479X · registry record · serial 18050979
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial pilot stated that, during the landing rollout in the tailwheel-equipped airplane, the left wheel axle fractured and separated from the airplane with the wheel attached. The left landing gear leg then dug into the runway surface, the airplane made a sudden left turn, and the left wing and left horizontal stabilizer struck the runway. An examination of the fractured left axle revealed features consistent with a bending overstress fracture. High magnification optical examination of the fracture also revealed several small fatigue cracks within the crack origin area. Although several fatigue initiation sites were present along the fracture origin area, none of them were large enough to have led to the failure or to have significantly lowered the ultimate strength of the axle enough for a bending overstress failure to occur under normal loading conditions. Therefore, it is likely the landing gear axle failed as a result of bending overstress due to a hard landing.
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
- Abnormal runway contact during landing (flare/touchdown)
- Part(s) separation from AC during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Main gear strut/axle/truck › Capability exceeded other cases naming the landing gear
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Main gear strut/axle/truck › Failure other cases naming the landing gear
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Attain/maintain not possible
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,374.6 hours in all; 760 in this make and model; 34 in the last 90 days; 2.7 in the last 30 days; 4,374.6 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: April 23, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,369 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 21, 2016; 34 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor O-470 SERIES (piston); 3,254 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SXQ Soldotna AK
- Destination: 5NK Naknek AK
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 08, 1,950 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; scat at 2,700 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.70 inHg
- Observation at 7:54 pm from PAKN, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
3 documents, released by the NTSB on June 5, 2017. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Materials Laboratory Factual Report 16-068 | PDF, 5 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Record of Conversation (Pilot) | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N6479X on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 180 Skywagon 2,605 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,683 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Cont Motor O-470 SERIES 12,780 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Naknek Airport · nearest airport
- Soldotna Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Alaska 5,930 since 1982 · 824 in the last ten years
- Alaska 9,145 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ANC16LA024.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.