Cessna 140 accident near Mesa, Arizona, March 11, 2006
On March 11, 2006 at about 6:30 am local time, a Cessna 140, registered N89166, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mesa, Arizona (Falcon Field). 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's improper use of the flight controls during landing, which resulted in a nose over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 11, 2006 · about 6:30 am local time
- Place
- Mesa, Arizona · Falcon Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 140 · all 140s on the register
- Registration
- N89166 · no longer on the register · serial 8180
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane nosed over during landing. The pilot noted light precipitation in the area and calm winds as he entered the pattern for landing. On short final he noticed a glossy looking runway and encountered light rain drops on the windscreen. He did a wheel landing and as the airplane rolled out, it drifted right of centerline. As he input corrective action for the right drift, he continued to hold the tail wheel off of the ground in order to maintain the best forward visibility. During these corrective actions, the airplane pitched forward and nosed over, coming to rest inverted. The pilot said the airplane did not have any mechanical malfunctions or failures.
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: 315 hours in all; 14 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Teledyne Continental C85-12F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PHX Phoenix AZ
- Destination: FFZ Mesa AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22L, 5,102 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 7,000 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Altimeter: 29.76 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.