Piper PA-18A accident near Roberts, Idaho, September 30, 1995
On September 30, 1995 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Piper PA-18A, registered N1953P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Roberts, Idaho (Private airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
an improperly performed major rebuild and inadequate inspection of the aircraft by maintenance personnel. Inadequate preflight inspection by the pilot contributed to the accident.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 30, 1995 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Roberts, Idaho · Private · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18A · all PA-18As on the register
- Registration
- N1953P · registry record · serial 18-4180
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that while landing on his private airstrip the left main wheel separated from the aircraft and the aircraft nosed over. According to a county sheriff report, the left main wheel retaining nut and cotter pin were missing from the axle, and there was no cotter pin securing the right main wheel retaining nut. The airplane had undergone a major rebuild and annual inspection about 5 months (12 flight hours) before the accident. The pilot stated that he performed a preflight inspection on the day of the accident but did not check the cotter pins, which are visible if installed. A statement in the sheriff report indicated that shortly before landing, the adult passenger in the rear seat unfastened his seat belt because two children in his lap were interfering with control stick travel.
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: 800 hours in all; 11 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,173 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 12, 1995; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 2,640 ft by 80 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:48 pm from IDA, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 | 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number SEA95LA229.