Maule M-7-260C accident near Lakeview, Arkansas, January 29, 2006
On January 29, 2006 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Maule M-7-260C, registered N347JM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lakeview, Arkansas (Gastons 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 failure to compensate for existing wind conditions during the landing roll. Contributing factors were the prevailing crosswind, and wet terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 29, 2006 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lakeview, Arkansas · Gastons Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Maule M-7-260C · all M-7-260Cs on the register
- Registration
- N347JM · no longer on the register · serial 3011C
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 4,227-hour private pilot reported in a written statement that during the landing-roll on runway 24 (a 3,200-feet long by 55-feet wide turf runway) the amphibian single-engine airplane drifted to the left due to a right crosswind. He then reported that the airplane's castering nose wheels, the slope at the edge of the runway, and the wet grass prevented him from correcting the drift. Subsequently, the airplane departed the left side of the runway and the left wing impacted a tree and separated from the fuselage. The pilot reported having accumulated a total of 43 flight hours in the accident make and model. An automated surface observing system located approximately 4 nautical miles east of the airport reported wind from 270 at 9 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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,227 hours in all; 43 in this make and model; 61 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 4,227 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 27,500 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-V4A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: KBPK Mountain Home AR at 6:30 pm
- Destination: 3M0 Lakeview AR
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 3,200 ft by 55 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.81 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from KBPK, 4 miles away
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.
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.