Zahn's Camp Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Oljato, Utah 84536
Friday, May 9, 2008 17:30 MDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot overflew the 1,190-foot-long dirt airstrip and it appeared safe for landing. The wind was light and variable as he made a stabilized approach. The airplane touched down long, bounced, and was firmly on the ground by midfield. When the pilot applied brakes in the sand runway, the wheels locked, the airplane skidded, and the pilot lost directional control. Approaching the runway's end, the airplane veered off its left side, went down an incline and nosed down. The pilot had relied upon a non-government publication in his preflight planning that appeared to indicate the airstrip was open for public use. The Federal Aviation Administration's aeronautical chart, while not depicting the (uncharted) airstrip's location, did show that the area was within the boundary of National Park Service-administered land, and that landing without authorization was prohibited.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to achieve a normal touchdown location and loss of directional control during landing roll out. Contributing to the accident were the runway's soft surface and short length.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 5/9/2008
Event Day of the Week Friday
Time of Event 1730
Event Time Zone Mountain Daylight Time
Event City Oljato
Event State UTAH
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 84536
Event Date Year 2008
Event Date Month 5
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 371317N
Event Location Longitude 1103249W
Event Location Airport Zahn's Camp
Event Location Nearest Airport ID NONE
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport On Airport
Distance from airport in statute miles --
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 3794
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Pilot
Time of the weather observation 1730 Mountain Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) --
Weather Observation Facility ID --
Elevation of weather observation facility --
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) --
Time Zone of the weather observation MDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 20
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) --
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) --
Variable Wind Indicator Variable
Wind Speed (knots) --
Wind Velocity Indicator Light and Variable
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) --
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury None
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None 2
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 25190
NTSB Notification Source FAA
NTSB Notification Date May 11 2008 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Mar 11 2009 4:52PM
User who most recently changed record coos
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Salt Lake City, UT

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N9030E
NTSB Number LAX08LA135
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? --
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name MAULE
Aircraft Model M-5-235C
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 7070C
Certified Max Gross Weight 2500
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 2
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Apr 1 2008 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 5
Airframe Hours 1271
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type Unknown
Aircraft Owner Name Wingnutz and Lama, Inc.
Aircraft Owner Street Address 943 N. Isabel Street
Aircraft Owner City Glendale
Aircraft Owner State CA
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 91207
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name John Lawson
Operator Same as Owner? No
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City Glendale
Operator State CA
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 91027
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? No
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Personal
Second Pilot on Board Yes
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code PGA
Departure City Page
Departure State AZ
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1700
Departure Time Zone MST
Destination Same as Local Flt crash at destination city
Destination Airport Code NONE
Destination City --
Destination State UT
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight Landing - roll
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Mar 11 2009 4:50PM
User who most recently changed record coos
Since inspection or accident Last Inspection
Event Location Runway Number and Location 06
Runway Length 1190
Runway Width 30
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --