20010726020539A

(-23) On July 26, 2001, at approximately 1815 MDT, N181SP, a Cessna 172 departed Farmington municipal airport on local flight. This was the second flihgt of the day for the private pilot, Mr. Ryan daniel crowe. He stated at about 20 minutes into the flight he was flying at around 500 ft AGL when the engine began to "sputter" and lose power. He spotted a road and banked the aircraft to the right to line up for the road and struck an overhead powerline with the right wing. After striking the powerline the engine began running normally and the pilot attempted to proceed to the closest airport. The aircraft felt sluggish and handled poorly. The aircraft would not climb over a hill and struck some trees when he attempted to reach a road. The aircraft impacted a tree with the left wing and came to rest on the roadway. The aircraft was substantially damaged and one passenger recieved only minor injuries. (.4) on July 26, 2001, approximately 1930 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N181SP, operated by sb aviation group, inc., doing business as seven bar four corners, was destroyed when it struck power lines during cruise FL ight near Farmington, new Mexico. The private pilot and his passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local flight conducted under title 49 CFR part 91. The flight originated at Farmington, new Mexico, at approximately 1900. According to the pilot's accident report, he was flying 500 feet above the ground when the engine began to "stutter." Being familiar with the area, he flew west towards the Arkansas loop, an oil field road. As he banked right towards the road, he called the Farmington control tower but got no response. He checked the carburetor heat, mixture, and fuel selector for proper positions. As the airplane continued the bank, he felt a "hard jerk" and heard a "screeching noise." His passenger told him they had struck a power line. The engine regained power momentarily and the pilot, again, tried contacting the Farmington control tower to no avail. After inspecting the airplane damage, he decided to proceed to the aztec airport. The airplane was now 100 feet above the ground and he realized it would not be able to climb. The pilot attempted to make a forced landing, but struck trees short of the road on which he intended to land. The airplane then struck the road, skidded, and struck another tree. The impact spun the airplane around and it came to a halt. Both wings and the empennage were extensively damaged. According to an FAA inspector who examined the wreckage, there was 3.5 gallons of fuel in the left wing tank and 15.0 gallons in the right tank. The fuel selector was positioned on the left tank (the pilot told the inspector he had switched to the left tank after striking the power line because he was concerned he would leak fuel from the damage wing tank). There were no obstructions of the vented fuel tank caps. Fuel system integrity had not been compromised. The inspector surmised that the power interruption resulted from a fuel pickup line becoming unported during the bank.