Piper PA-18-150 accident near Palacios, Texas, May 21, 1999
On May 21, 1999 at about 3:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-18-150, registered N9670P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Palacios, Texas (Private Air Strip airport). It was a business 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 failure to maintain clearance with terrain. A factor was the high vegetation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 21, 1999 · about 3:00 pm local time
- Place
- Palacios, Texas · Private Air Strip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18-150 · all PA-18-150s on the register
- Registration
- N9670P · registry record · serial 18-7509014
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane's left wing contacted tall weeds during the landing flare, and subsequently, the airplane nosed over. The pilot stated that there was a 'slight crosswind from the left,' which drifted the airplane 'slightly to the right.' The pilot lowered the left wing to correct for the crosswind. Subsequently the left wing contacted tall weeds located adjacent to the landing area. The airplane exited the left side of the air strip, where it rolled up a canal bank, turned 90 degrees to the left, and nosed over into the canal. The pilot stated that he had landed in the same area a few weeks earlier and was unaware that the grass had grown so much since then.
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: 3,793 hours in all; 3,400 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 26 in the last 30 days; 3,773 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,335 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 9, 1999; 47 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: NONE Palacios TX at 2:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 FTW99LA146.