Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain proper runway alignment during the takeoff roll. A factor associated with the accident was the rough/uneven condition of the runway's surface.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The flight was departing an airstrip that was in poor condition. The pilot stated the left main gear 'slipped' into a depression in the runway's surface during the takeoff roll. The airplane continued to slip off the runway until the left wheel struck the willows growing on the runway's edge. The pilot stated it was too late to abort the takeoff and the airplane overran the end of the runway.
Source record
Factual narrative
On October 1, 1994, at 1500 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Cessna 180 airplane, N2707X, registered to Greg Wiren of Chicken, Alaska, and operated by the pilot, ran off an airstrip near Taylor Mountain located near Aniak, Alaska. The personal flight operating under 14 CFR Part 91, was departing the airstrip and the destination was McGrath, Alaska. No flight plan was filed and visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The pilot and his passenger were not injured and the airplane was substantially damaged. According to the pilot, the airstrip was in poor condition with potholes and willows growing close to the edge. During the takeoff roll, when he lifted the airplane's tail, the left main wheel "slipped" into a depression on the runway. The left wheel continued to slip off the runway and into the willows on the runway's edge. He stated it was too late to abort the takeoff and the airplane ran off the end of the runway. -