NTSB Factual Report

On June 8, 2005, about 1130 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Cessna 170B airplane, N2551D, sustained substantial damage when the left wing struck the ground during the landing roll at a remote beach, about 31 miles west of Ninilchick, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The airplane was operated by the pilot. The private certificated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan was filed. The flight originated at Merrill Field, Anchorage, Alaska, about 1030.

During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on June 10, the pilot reported that he was landing toward the south on an area of beach at Polly Creek, located on the Alaska Peninsula. The pilot said that during the landing roll, a tailwind pushed the tail of the airplane to the left. The outboard end of the left wing, and the outboard end of the left elevator, struck the ground. The air valve stem of the left main wheel tundra tire was sheered off, and the left main tire deflated. The pilot indicated that the airplane received damage to the leading edge of the left wing, the outboard portion of the wing spar, several wing skin panels, and the balance weight of the left elevator.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during the landing roll on a beach, which resulted in an on-ground collision with terrain. A factor associated with the accident is a tailwind.