Cessna 140 accident near Sitka, Alaska, July 4, 1999
On July 4, 1999, a Cessna 140, registered N3579V, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sitka, Alaska (Sitka 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate compensation for crosswind conditions. Factors in the accident were a crosswind, and the pilot's lack of total experience in the type of airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 4, 1999
- Place
- Sitka, Alaska · Sitka · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 140 · all 140s on the register
- Registration
- N3579V · registry record · serial 14748
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The certificated private pilot was practicing touch and go landings in a tail wheel equipped airplane. During the landing roll, a 90 degree crosswind from the left lifted the left wing. The pilot applied left aileron, and right rudder, but the tail of the airplane began to veer to the right, turning the nose of the airplane to the left. The airplane ground looped to the left, and the right wing struck the runway surface. The airplane received damage to the right wing spar, and the right gear attach point. The pilot had accrued 86 hours total time, with 33.2 hours as pilot-in-command, and 31.2 hours in the accident airplane make and model.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 86 hours in all; 31 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 33 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,450 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-90-12-F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PASI at 7:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 6,500 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 205° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:48 pm from PAS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N3579V 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 ANC99LA089.