On June 26, 2002, about 1400 Alaska daylight time, a Piper PA-11 airplane, N62136, sustained substantial damage when it nosed over while landing on a sandbar in the Omar River, about 35 miles east of Kotzebue, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The solo private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated at the Kotzebue Airport, Kotzebue, about 1400. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on June 27, the pilot said he made several passes over the sandbar to check its suitability for landing. He said the approach and landing were normal, but he braked too heavily during the landing roll, and the airplane nosed over. The pilot said the wings, tail, and lift struts were damaged during the accident.