Maule M-5-210C accident near Eureka, Montana, December 9, 2025
On December 9, 2025 at about 9:00 pm local time, a 1975 Maule M-5-210C, registered N339X, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Eureka, Montana (Eureka airport). It was a ferry 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 directional control during landing in crosswind conditions. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of recent flight experience.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 9, 2025 · about 9:00 pm local time · cases in 2025
- Place
- Eureka, Montana · Eureka · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Maule M-5-210C, built 1975 · all M-5-210Cs on the register
- Registration
- N339X · registry record · serial 6151
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that upon landing in the tailwheel-equipped airplane, it encountered a crosswind. The right wing lifted, and the left wing dropped and struck the runway, contacting the asphalt surface. The pilot reported that he did not apply appropriate crosswind control inputs during landing. The airplane subsequently ground looped and exited the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the left wing and aileron. The pilot reported no pre-accident mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the pilot was landing on runway 19 with light and variable wind at 5 knots. The pilot added that the accident flight was his first flight in about 7 years, but could not remember exactly when his last flight was.
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
- Dragged wing/rotor/float/other during landing (landing roll)
- Loss of control in flight during landing defining event
- Abnormal runway contact during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Experience/knowledge › Experience/qualifications › Recent experience › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 877 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 0 in the last 90 days; 0 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: June 26, 2012
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,534 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 1, 2023; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,350 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-360 (piston); 2,534 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 53U Big Fork MT at 8:30 pm
- Destination: 88M Eureka MT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 01/1, 4,200 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.97 inHg
- Observation at 2:00 pm from KGPI, 51 miles away
Weather report (METAR): METAR KGPI 092055Z 00000KT 10SM SCT060 07/M03 A2997
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photograph 1 – Aircraft resting off the runway
Photograph 2 – Damage to the left-wing tip and Aileron
Photograph 3 – Damage to the left-wing tip and AileronThe NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
3 documents, released by the NTSB on March 13, 2026. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 10 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Photos | PDF, 4 pages · our copy | View Download |
| 3 | Memorandum for Record A�� Telephone Interview, Pilot | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Other NTSB records under N339X the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N339X on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Maule M-5 364 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Maule 1,345 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental IO-360 32 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Eureka Airport · nearest airport
- Ferndale Airfield · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Montana 1,121 since 1982 · 166 in the last ten years
- Montana 6,049 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N339X 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/WPR26LA055.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.