# Accident 19980427013209A: Tcraft BL1265, Sitka, AK, April 27, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 27, 1998, 20:10 local time
- Place: Sitka, AK
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 56.7305° N, 134.9994° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=56.7305&lon=-134.9994&mi=10
- Aircraft: N33902, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N33902-2012-10-03) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Taylorcraft BL12-65 (registry code 8850356, https://openairdocs.org/model/taylorcraft-bl12-65) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-145B series (registry code 41502, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-145b-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: TCRAFT BL1265
- Reported engine: CONT A658F
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 100 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC98FA043](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC98FA043) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980427013209A

## Narrative

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

COLLIDED WITH MOUNTAIN TERRAIN. (.4)THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PRIVATE PILOT DEPARTED ON A CROSS-COUNTRY FLIGHT OVER COASTAL FJORDS AND MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN. PRIOR TO DEPARTURE, THE PILOT OBTAINED A WEATHER BRIEFING THAT INCLUDED AIRMETS FOR MOUNTAIN OBSCURATION IN CLOUDS AND PRECIPITATION ALONG THE ROUTE OF FLIGHT.  NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED BY THE PILOT.  ABOUT 10 HOURS AFTER DEPARTURE, AN ELT SIGNAL WAS RECEIVED FROM A LOCATION ABOUT 7 MILES FROM THE PLANNED DESTINATION.  DUE TO LOW CEILINGS, HELICOPTER SEARCH PERSONNEL COULD NOT REACH THE ACCIDENT SITE.  THE FOLLOWING DAY, THE AIRPLANE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED ON STEEP, SNOW COVERED MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN, ABOUT 3,000 FEET MEAN SEA LEVEL.  AVALANCHE CONDITIONS PREVENTED RESCUE PERSONNEL FROM REACHING THE WRECKAGE UNTIL 18 DAYS LATER.                                                                      (-23)AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED AND THE PILOT FATALLY INJURIES DURING A COLLISION WITH MOUNTAIN TERRAIN ABOUT SIX MILES EAST FO SITKA, ALASKA.  HE WAS ENROUTE FROM YAKUTAT TO SIKA IN VFR TO MARGINAL VFR WEATHER CONDITIONS.

## 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 ANC98FA043](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC98FA043), Apr 28, 1998: Taylorcraft BL12 (N33902), Sitka, AK, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's attempted VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions. Contributing factors were clouds, the pilot's lack of instrument flight experience, obscuration and mountainous terrain.

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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