Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to recognize that he was landing at the wrong airstrip on a snow-covered and unplowed runway, resulting in the airplane nosing over.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
According to the pilot, he was flying from one airport to another using a highway as a reference. He saw an airport that he thought was his destination airport and made a straight-in approach for landing. Just before touching down, he realized that he was not landing at the correct airport and instead was landing on a snow-covered and unplowed private airstrip. He realized that he did not have time to go around and landed on the snow. The airplane crossed a snow machine track and nosed over. The engine firewall and both wings sustained substantial damage.
Source record
Factual narrative
According to the pilot, he was flying from one airport to another using a highway as a reference. He saw an airport that he thought was the destination airport, and made a straight-in approach for landing. Just before touching down, the pilot realized that he was not landing at the correct airport, and was landing on a snow-covered and unplowed private airstrip. He stated that he did not have time to go around, and landed on the snow. The airplane crossed a snow machine track and nosed over. The engine firewall and both wings sustained substantial damage.