Cessna 180G accident near Fairbanks, Alaska, March 14, 1999
On March 14, 1999 at about 10:28 pm local time, a Cessna 180G, registered N4721U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fairbanks, Alaska (Fairbanks International 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
Water contamination of the fuel supply, and the pilot's inadequate preflight inspection to ensure all water was removed from the fuel supply. Factors in the accident were a wrinkle in the wing fuel tank bladder, and snow covered terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 14, 1999 · about 10:28 pm local time
- Place
- Fairbanks, Alaska · Fairbanks International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180G · all 180Gs on the register
- Registration
- N4721U · registry record · serial 18051421
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The certificated commercial pilot pushed the airplane out of a hanger and sumped the wing fuel tanks. The airplane remained outside throughout the day while the ambient temperature warmed. No further sumping of the wing tanks was conducted. After departure, the pilot reduced the engine power to level the airplane at the airport traffic pattern altitude. The engine began to run rough, and the pilot began an emergency landing approach to a snow-covered airstrip located near the approach end of an asphalt runway. The engine roughness diminished, and the pilot was cleared to land on the larger asphalt runway. The engine then quit. The airplane touched down in an area of snow between the end of the small airstrip and the beginning of the asphalt runway. The airplane nosed over, and received damage to the vertical stabilizer, the rudder, and the left wing lift strut. An examination of the airplane revealed a wrinkle in the left wing fuel bladder, and 3 ounces of water in the gascolator.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 275 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 3,400 as pilot in command; 300 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,663 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 1998; 26 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-R (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 1R, 3,190 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 020° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 13,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 12°F (-11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:43 pm from PAF
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.
Other NTSB records under N4721U 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.