# Accident 20010813020629A: Maule M6235, Kotzebue, AK, August 13, 2001

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 13, 2001, 10:46 local time
- Place: Kotzebue, AK
- Airport: Ralph Wien Memorial
- Damage: No damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 66.8333° N, 162.5500° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=66.8333&lon=-162.5500&mi=10
- Aircraft: N56467, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N56467-2003-10-10) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Maule M-6-235 (registry code 5460160, https://openairdocs.org/model/maule-m-6-235) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming IO-540 series (registry code 41530, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: MAULE M6235
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC01FA106](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC01FA106) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010813020629A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON AUGUST 13, 2001 AT ABOUT 10:45 AM., MR. PURSELL ALONG WITH HIS 13 YEAR OLD SON DEPARTED THE KOTZEBUE AIRPORT UNDER A SPECIAL VFR CLEARANCE FOR DEERING, ALASKA. AFTER DEPARTING FROM RUNWAY 17, MR. PURSELL PROCEEDED SOUTH BOUND. AT ABOUT 10:46 AM. MR. PURSELL'S AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH A 330 FOOT RADIO TOWER, 4.3 MILES TO THE SOUTH OF THE KOTZEBUE AIRPORT. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK THE RADIO TOWER 58 FEET BELOW THE TOP OF THE RADIO TOWER. THE PILOT MR. PURSELL WAS FATALLY INJURED, HIS SON WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED, AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED. MR. PURSELL CONTACTED OTZ-FSS AT ABOUT 10:36 AM, FOR AIRPORT ADVISORYS. MR. PURSELL WAS ADVISED BY THE KOTZEBUE FAA FLIGHT SERVICE STATION, THAT VFR WAS NOT RECOMMENDED. MR. PURSELL FILED A VFR FLIGHT PLAND AND DEPARTED UNDER A SPECIAL VFR CLEARANCE.

## 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 ANC01FA106](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC01FA106), Aug 13, 2001: Maule M-6-235 (N56467), Kotzebue, AK, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate clearance from an obstruction (antenna tower), and his continued flight into instrument meteorological conditions. Factors associated with the accident were…

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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