Cessna 170B accident near Lopez Island, Washington, March 28, 2000
On March 28, 2000 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Cessna 170B, registered N4653C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lopez Island, Washington (Lopez Island 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's failure to maintain aircraft control during landing. Contributing factors were the crosswind condition, gusts, and the pilot's overall lack of total (flight and tail wheel) experience.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 28, 2000 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lopez Island, Washington · Lopez Island · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170B · all 170Bs on the register
- Registration
- N4653C · no longer on the register · serial 25597
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 61-hour pilot was executing a landing in his tailwheel-equipped Cessna 170B to a 2,900 foot long asphalt runway 16. Winds at a nearby airport were reported as 220 degrees magnetic at 12 knots, gusting to 22 knots. Just prior to touchdown, the aircraft drifted right of the centerline, touched down, bounced and the tail kicked right. On the third bounce the aircraft's right tire deflated. The aircraft continued to 'skip' down the runway veering further to the left and coming to rest 90 degrees to the centerline on the far left side of the runway. The pilot reported that he had recently acquired the aircraft and had approximately 13 hours of flight experience in tailwheel-equipped aircraft. He also commented that he had not flown in crosswind/gusty conditions of this magnitude during his flight experience, and that there was no mechanical malfunction with the aircraft.
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: 61 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 29 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,261 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 5, 1999; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-145-2 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BLI Bellingham WA at 7:00 pm
- Destination: S31
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 2,900 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 12 knots, gusting 22
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 7,000 ft
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from FHR, 5 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 N4653C 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.