Cessna 185 N5892T accident near Fairbanks, Alaska

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to recognize he was taking off with a tailwind and his inadequate compensation for taking off with a tailwind, which led to the airplane’s failure to attain a climb and a subsequent forced landing.

NTSB analysis

According to the pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane, he and his passenger waited most of the day for the 30-knot wind to subside before departing the 1,200-ft-long dirt and grass airstrip.

He reported that the wind velocity had decreased to 10 knots and that he had calculated that, with the 10-knot headwind, the airplane would rotate about 700 ft down the runway. The pilot monitored the wind via ribbons placed at various locations around the airstrip. During takeoff, the airplane rotated about 700 ft down the runway and climbed to about 8 ft above the ground. The pilot stated that it "then it felt like we lost our lift." The pilot recalled that there wasn't enough runway remaining to land and that there was a brush-covered bank at the departure end of the runway. The airplane started to settle to the ground, and although operating at full power and on the cusp of a stall, they cleared the bank. Beyond the bank, the pilot landed the airplane on a short sand bar, but the airplane overran the sand bar and impacted several large rocks.

After exiting the airplane, the pilot noticed that he had departed with an 8- to 10-knot tailwind. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left-wing strut, the aileron, the horizontal stabilizer and the elevator.

The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies with the airframe or engine that would have prevented normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA16CA503 for the full record.