# Accident 20021122032799A: Wsk M18A, Bigthicket, TX, November 22, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 22, 2002, 09:00 local time
- Place: Bigthicket, TX
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137)
- Operator: LTXG
- Location: 30.3036° N, 94.3233° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.3036&lon=-94.3233&mi=10
- Aircraft: N6288M, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N6288M) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: WSK PZL Mielec M-18A (registry code 9810103, https://openairdocs.org/model/wsk-pzl-mielec-m-18a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pezetel ASZ-621R-M18 (registry code 49800, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pezetel-asz-621r-m18) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: WSK M18A
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW03LA047](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW03LA047) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021122032799A

## Narrative

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

(-19) ON NOVEMBER 22, 2002, APPROXIMATELY 0900 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A WSK PZL MIELEC M18A SINGLE-ENGINE AGRICULTURAL AIRPLANE, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY FOLLOWING A FORCED LANDING AFTER EXPERIENCING A PARTIAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER NEAR BIG THICKET, TEXAS. THE AIRPLANE WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY AERIAL TIMBER APPLICATORS OF COOPERSTOWN, NORTH DAKOTA. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT, SOLE OCCUPANT OF THE AIRPLANE, WAS NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 137 AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT, AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED A PRIVATE GRASS AIRSTRIP AT WILDWOOD RESORT, TEXAS, AT 0850. IN A TELEPHONE INTERVIEW WITH THE NTSB ACCIDENT INVESTIGATOR-IN-CHARGE, THE PILOT REPORTED THAT AFTER COMPLETING THE FIRST PASS WHILE DISPERSING FERTILIZER "THE ENGINE WENT TO IDLE POWER." THE PILOT STATED THAT ATTEMPTS TO RESTORE POWER WERE UNSUCCESSFUL AND THE AIRPLANE SETTLED INTO A GROVE OF 20-FOOT PINE TREES. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT BOTH WING SPARS SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE AS A RESULT OF IMPACTING THE TREES. (-23) WHILE PERFORMING AERIAL APPLICATION OF DRY FERTILIZER, THE PILOT STAT                                                ED THAT "AT THE END OF MY FIRST PASS, WHEN I PULLED THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT UP TO EXECUTE A TURN, THE AIRCRAFT ENGINE WENT TO IDLE. NO MATTER WHAT I DID IN THE COCKPIT THE ENGINE REMAINED AT IDLE. THE FUEL PUMP AND THE THROTTLE CONTROL HAD NO BEARING ON THE OPERATION OF THE ENGINE. FOLLOWING THE AIRCRAFT CRASH THE ENGINE WAS STILL IDLING AND I SECURED THE ENGINE BY ACTUATING THE CONDITION LEVER AND SELECTING THE FUEL SELECTOR TO OFF." DUE TO THE LOCATION OF THE AIRCRAFT THE AIRCRAFT SALVAGE COMPANY THAT EXTRACTED THE AIRCRAFT TOOK IT DIRECTLY TO THE SALVAGE COMPANY IN DALLAS, TEXAS. THE IIC FROM THE NTSB IS TO ARRANGE FOR THE INSPECTION OF THE AIRCRAFT ENGINE AT THAT LOCATION.

## 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 FTW03LA047](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW03LA047), Nov 22, 2002: WSK PZL Mielec M18A (N6288M), Votaw, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: A loss of engine power for undertermined reasons. Contributing factors included the unsuitable terrain for the forced landing and the lack of airspeed.

## Other reports on N6288M (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Incident 20050827020539I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050827020539I), Aug 27, 2005: Wsk M18A (N6288M), Pendleton, OR, Minor damage. (-23) On 08/28/05 N6288M landed on runway 29 at kpdt. As the aircraft was slowing, it nosed over and the prop contacted the surface of runway 29. Minor damage…

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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