Piper PA 18A 150 accident near Auburn, Washington, January 24, 2016
On January 24, 2016 at about 8:15 pm local time, a 1958 Piper PA 18A 150, registered N9295D, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Auburn, Washington (Auburn Muni airport). It was an instructional 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 failure of the pilot receiving instruction to maintain directional control during the landing roll, resulting in a ground-loop.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 24, 2016 · about 8:15 pm local time
- Place
- Auburn, Washington · Auburn Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA 18A 150, built 1958 · all PA 18A 150s on the register
- Registration
- N9295D · registry record · serial 18-6602
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor reported that during the landing roll the airplane veered left. The pilot receiving instruction applied a "sharp application" to the right brake. The flight instructor further reported that he directed the pilot receiving instruction "off the brakes", a total of three times. As a result of the right brake application, the airplane ground looped to the right, the left main landing gear collapsed, and the left wing impacted the ground, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing. The flight instructor reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Loss of control on ground during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 333.5 hours in all; 7.6 in this make and model; 47.5 in the last 90 days; 19.5 in the last 30 days; 284.7 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 28, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Flight instructor
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: balloon; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 3,634 hours in all; 357 in this make and model; 94 in the last 90 days; 32 in the last 30 days; 3,546 as pilot in command; 1,951 on instruments
- Last flight review: February 11, 2014
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,902 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 6, 2015
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 1,046 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PLU Puyallup WA at 7:55 pm
- Destination: S50 Auburn WA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 3,400 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 22,000 ft; a few clouds at 1,600 ft
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from KSEA, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 2 |
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 GAA16CA112.