Piper PA 18-150 accident near Talkeetna, Alaska, October 2, 2015
On October 2, 2015 at about 2:02 am local time, a 1974 Piper PA 18-150, registered N8996Y, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Talkeetna, Alaska. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were 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 excessive brake application during landing, which resulted in a nose-over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 2, 2015 · about 2:02 am local time
- Place
- Talkeetna, Alaska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA 18-150 A150, built 1974 · all PA 18-150s on the register
- Registration
- N8996Y · registry record · serial 18-7409138
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he was practicing off airport landings on a gravel bar, as part of a backcountry flying course, with a company safety pilot in the rear seat. During the landing roll and as the airplane approached the end of the gravel bar, he applied the brakes and the airplane nosed over. The pilot reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right forward lift strut and the empennage.
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
What happened, in order
- Nose over/nose down during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Aircraft capability › Braking capability › Incorrect use/operation
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,400 hours in all; 24 in this make and model; 78 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 2,761 as pilot in command; 423 on instruments
- Last flight review: July 29, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot-Rated Passenger
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,833.6 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 2015
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 SERIES (piston); 2,834 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 4AK6 Palmer AK
- Destination: 4AK6 Palmer AK
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.47 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from PATK, 16 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N8996Y 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 GAA16CA004.