Curtiss-Wright Travel Air 4000 accident near Tillamook, Oregon, October 5, 2002
On October 5, 2002 at about 8:45 pm local time, a Curtiss-Wright Travel Air 4000, registered N4949, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tillamook, Oregon (Tillamook airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The fracture of the weld joining the left main wheel strut to the left/right main wheel axel resulting in separation of the strut from the axle during an unknown phase of operation which ultimately lead to the left gear collapse and subsequent nose-over on landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 5, 2002 · about 8:45 pm local time
- Place
- Tillamook, Oregon · Tillamook · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Curtiss-Wright Travel Air 4000
- Registration
- N4949 · no longer on the register · serial 447
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot preflighted the 1928 Curtiss Wright Travel Air 4000 and departed with two passengers on a short, local sightseeing flight. Upon landing the aircraft veered left off the runway nosing over and coming to rest inverted in the grass. Post crash examination revealed that the original weld between the left-right main wheel axle and the left wheel "V" strut had fractured allowing the left strut and wheel axel to separate and the left wheel to subsequently collapse/shift during the landing roll. Although company personnel on the ground observed the aircraft prior to landing and noted the left main gear "hanging down" they were unable to contact the pilot by radio and the pilot's view of the main wheels was obstructed in flight.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 8,000 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 75 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: June 20, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,850 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 11, 2002; 98 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,850 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming R680 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Tillamook Air Tours
The flight
- Departed from: S47 Tillamook OR
- Destination: S47
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 31, 4,990 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,100 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.35 inHg
- Observation at 7:38 pm from MMV, 30 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
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.