Piper PA-18-150 accident near Beatty, Nevada, February 16, 2002
On February 16, 2002 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-18-150, registered N9299D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Beatty, Nevada (Beatty 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 failed to maintain control of the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 16, 2002 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Beatty, Nevada · Beatty · 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
- N9299D · no longer on the register · serial 18-6606
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings when the airplane started to drift to the right. He applied left rudder but felt that was ineffective. He touched the left heel brake and the airplane immediately nosed over resulting in substantial damage. The pilot said the airplane had a 30.5-gallon fuel tank in each wing. The right tank was 1/2 full and the left tank was 3/4 full. The pilot thought the right brake must have grabbed when he touched the left brake. He thought the fuel must have sloshed forward and caused the nose to drop. The pilot plans to replace the heel brakes with toe brake pedals, and replace the fuel tanks with 12-gallon tanks.
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: 400 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 1 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 1, 2001
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A3B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BTY Beatty NV at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 5,600 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 0 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 14,000 ft
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 5:56 pm from LAS, 93 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.
Other NTSB records under N9299D 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.