Cessna 175 N9493B

Summary

On 5 January 2016 at about 00:10 local time, a Cessna 175 registered N9493B was involved in an accident near Seeley Lake, Montana, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

5 January 2016 at 00:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Seeley Lake, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

Seeley Lake (23S)

Coordinates

47.1800, -113.4453

Aircraft

Cessna 175

Registration

N9493B

Category

Airplane

Year built

1958

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kalispell → Seeley Lake

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

GAA16CA097

Nobody was injured.

The pilot' failure to identify the plowed runway width in dusk and flat light conditions, which resulted in a touchdown left of the runway center, an impact with a snow berm, and a ground loop.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that during the approach he was informed by a person on the ground, who was not associated with airport operations, that there was about 3 inches of compacted snow on the runway. Before attempting to land, he completed a low pass over the runway to observe the runway conditions, but reported that it was dusk and he was observing flat light conditions. The pilot reported that the touchdown was normal, but about 50 to 75 feet into the landing roll the airplane pulled to the left. He attempted to correct with right rudder, but was unable to stop the airplane from ground looping to the left into a snow berm. After the accident, the pilot observed that he "landed left of center" and the left main landing gear caught a one foot snow berm. The right wing and right elevator were substantially damaged. According to the Federal Aviation Administration Airport Facility Directory, the destination had "intermittent" snow removal and the airport manager could be called for current conditions. The runway used was not equipped with runway lights.  The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.