# Accident 19970706016769A: Piper PA18, Middleville, MI, July 6, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 6, 1997, 07:10 local time
- Place: Middleville, MI
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: To Init Climb(1st Pwr Reduct)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 42.7107° N, 85.4600° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.7107&lon=-85.4600&mi=10
- Aircraft: N183DP, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N183DP-1999-01-27) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-18 (registry code 7101802, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-18) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA18
- Reported engine: LYC O320A2B
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 2,000 total, 16 in this make and model, 49 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI97LA197](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA197) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970706016769A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

AIRCRAFT CRASHED INTO FIELD. (.4)EDO FLOATS WERE INSTALLED ON THE AIRPLANE ON 6/16/97, ABOUT 20 DAYS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT ACCUMULATED 5.8 HOURS TOTAL TIME IN THIS AIRPLANE ON FLOATS. THE REVISED WEIGHT AND BALANCE REVEALED A NEW USEFUL LOAD OF 439 POUNDS. THE PILOT WEIGHTED 185 POUNDS, AND WAS CARRYING A PASSENGER WEIGHING ABOUT 170 POUNDS AND 36 GALLONS OF FUEL, WHICH TOTALED 571 POUNDS. THIS WAS APPROXIMATELY 132 POUNDS OVER THE AIRPLANE'S MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE GROSS WEIGHT. SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF, THE AIRPLANE CRASHED AND WAS DESTROYED BY GROUND IMPACT AND POSTCRASH FIRE. GROUND SCARS WERE MEASURED TO BE 50 FEET LONG.  A WITNESS REPORTED THE AIRPLANE MADE A SERIES OF RPM CHANGES, WITH THE LAST BEING THE ENGINE GOING TO FULL POWER. AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED NEITHER A PREIMPACT FLIGHT CONTROL FAILURE NOR ANY ENGINE MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION. A FUEL SAMPLE FROM THE RIGHT FUEL TANK APPEARED TO BE A MIXTURE OF AUTO GAS AND OIL OF THE TYPE COMMONLY USED FOR FUEL IN A TWO-STROKE ENGINE. THE APPEARANCE OF THE FUEL SAMPLE LOOKED GOLD IN COLOR AND HAD AN OILY FEEL TO IT WHEN LEFT TO DRY.                                                                                       (-23) AIRCRAFT DEPARTED BARLOW LAKE ( 3 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MIDDLEVILLE, MI) AT 0700 HOURS. APPROXIMATELY 1.5 MILES NORTHEAST THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED IN A FIELD.  A POST FIRE OCCURED AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS COMPLETELY BURNED.  PILOT AND PASSENGER SUSTAINED FATAL INJURIES.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB CHI97LA197](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA197), Jul 6, 1997: Piper PA-18 (N183DP), Middleville, MI, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: fuel contamination, due to improper servicing of the aircraft; and failure of the pilot to maintain adequate airspeed, while maneuvering to land, which resulted in a inadvertent stall and collision…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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