Cub Crafters INC CC11-100 accident near Payson, Arizona, June 1, 2013
On June 1, 2013 at about 3:50 pm local time, a Cub Crafters INC CC11-100, registered N787AK, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Payson, Arizona (Red Creek airport). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain aircraft control during the landing flare with a quartering tailwind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 1, 2013 · about 3:50 pm local time
- Place
- Payson, Arizona · Red Creek · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cub Crafters INC CC11-100 · all CC11-100s on the register
- Registration
- N787AK · registry record · serial CC11-00006
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he was flying a tail-wheel equipped airplane and conducting his second landing at a back country airstrip. During the landing flare, the airplane floated longer than expected and was starting to drift to the left side of the runway. The pilot added full power to go around when the left main landing gear struck a bush and the airplane turned sideways. The right landing gear collapsed and the right wing was substantially damaged when it struck the ground. The pilot reported that after exiting the airplane he noticed that the wind was a gusting right quartering tailwind. The pilot reported no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operations.
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
What happened, in order
- Loss of control in flight during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (flare/touchdown)
- Landing gear collapse during landing (flare/touchdown)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Instructor/check pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Tailwind › Effect on operation
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, sport pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine
- Flight time: 1,559 hours in all; 1,400 in this make and model; 98 in the last 90 days; 33 in the last 30 days; 1,462 as pilot in command; 986 on instruments
- Last flight review: November 2, 2012
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Flight time: 20 hours in all; 10 in the last 30 days; 0 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,392 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 16, 2013; 41 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor O-200 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FFZ Mesa AZ at 2:15 pm
- Destination: FFZ Mesa AZ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 1,200 ft by 25 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 11 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 3:35 pm from SEZ, 42 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 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.
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 WPR13CA256.