Riley D-16A accident near Point Roberts, Washington, December 1, 2006
On December 1, 2006 at about 10:15 pm local time, a Riley D-16A, registered N119N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Point Roberts, Washington (Point Roberts Airpark 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 pre-existing crack in the nose wheel fork, which allowed separation of the nose wheel during the takeoff roll, resulting in collapse of the nose landing gear.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 1, 2006 · about 10:15 pm local time
- Place
- Point Roberts, Washington · Point Roberts Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Riley D-16A
- Registration
- N119N · registry record · serial TTN-51
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, during the takeoff roll at about rotation speed, he felt the nose landing gear of the airplane "give way" and the airplane began to drift to the left. As he applied right rudder to correct the yaw, he felt "a continued collapse" of the nose landing gear and elected to abort the takeoff. The airplane's nose and both propellers struck the ground. Examination of photos provided by an insurance adjustor revealed that both engines were displaced down and to the right. The right engine firewall was torn from the engine nacelle, and the left engine firewall was buckled and distorted. Additionally, the photos revealed that the nose landing gear fork had broken into two pieces, which allowed the nose wheel to separate from the airplane, resulting in collapse of the nose landing gear. The pilot reported that "an aircraft structural engineer made the observation that my nose gear fork had an old hidden crack that could have contributed to the failure."
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: foreign licence, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 947 hours in all; 79 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3
The aircraft
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Lycoming O-340 (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming O-340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1RL Point Roberts WA
- Destination: 1RL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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.