Cessna 180H accident near Gillette, Wyoming, August 14, 1999
On August 14, 1999, a Cessna 180H, registered N7939V, was substantially damaged in an accident near Gillette, Wyoming (Gillette-Campbell County 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 pilot's inadvertent ground loop during landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 14, 1999
- Place
- Gillette, Wyoming · Gillette-Campbell County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180H · all 180Hs on the register
- Registration
- N7939V · registry record · serial 18051839
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said he called the tower for airport advisories when he was 10 to 12 miles north of the airport. He was given a straight in to runway 16, but he didn't remember hearing the wind direction or its velocity. He did perform a left cross wind landing, but as he touched the runway the airplane 'weather vaned to the left.' The subsequent ground loop damaged the right wing tip and dorsal fin. The pilot stated that the surface winds were in excess of 30 knots from his left rear. He said the flags at the terminal were flying straight out. The official recorded winds for Gillette-Campbell County Airport at 1755 were clear skies with winds 080 degrees at 10 knots.
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: 2,000 hours in all; 1,800 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,900 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,977 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 18, 1999; 28 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-S (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HVR Havre MT
- Destination: GCC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 7,500 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 pm from GCC
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 N7939V 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.