# Accident 20030108000069A: Piper PA34200, Bountiful, UT, January 8, 2003 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: January 8, 2003, 20:59 local time - Place: Bountiful, UT - Airport: Salt Lake Skypark Airport - Damage: Substantial damage - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 40.8694° N, 111.9272° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.8694&lon=-111.9272&mi=10 - Aircraft: N16453 (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA34200 - NTSB investigation: [NTSB DEN03LA031](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN03LA031) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030108000069A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) ON JANUARY 8, 2003, AT 2059 MST, MR. JOSEPH BENNETT WAS PILOT IN COMMAND OF A PIPER PA-34, N16453, AT THE BOUNTIFUL SKYPARK AIRPORT. HE WAS ATTEMPTING TO LAND ON RUNWAY 16, WHEN HE FLEW INTO A FOG BANK AND LOSS SIGHT OF THE RUNWAY. HE INITIATED A GO-AROUND BUT STRUCK A POWER ABOUT 1/8 OF A MILE EAST OF THE NORTH END OF RUNWAY 16. THE NOSE WHEEL BROKE OFF AND THE PILOT WAS ABLE TO SUCESSFULLY LAND THE AIRPLANE AT HILL AFB AFTER DECLARING AN EMERGENCY WITH SLC-ATC. (.19) ON JANUARY 8, 2003, AT 2054 MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME, A PIPER PA-34-200, N16453, OPERATED BY A COMMERCIAL PILOT, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED WHEN THE AIRPLANE STRUCK POWER LINES DURING A MISSED APPROACH INTO THE BOUNTIFUL-SKY PARK AIRPORT (BTF), BOUNTIFUL, UTAH. NIGHT VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE PERSONAL FLIGHT WAS BEING CONDUCTED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF TITLE 14 CFR PART 91. NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS ON FILE. THE PILOT AND PILOT-RATED PASSENGER ON BOARD THE AIRPLANE REPORTED NO INJURIES. THE LOCAL FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT BOUNTIFUL, UTAH. IN HIS STATEMENT TO A FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION INSPECTOR, THE PILOT SAID THEY WERE ON APPROACH AND ENTERED A HAZE LEVEL. HE SAID THAT EVERYTHING WENT WHITE. HE BROUGHT THE POWER UP AND STARTED A LEFT BANK TURN. WHEN THE AIRPLANE WAS APPROXIMATELY 20 DEGREES OFF OF RUNWAY HEADING, THE AIRPLANE SNAGGED THE TOP WIRES OF A POWER LINE. THE PILOT SAID THAT AFTER THE STRIKE, THE AIRPLANE BEGAN TO PORPOISE IN THE AIR. THE PILOT SAID HE BROUGHT THE GEAR UP AND NOTED AN UNSAFE GEAR WARNING LIGHT. THE PILOT PUT THE LANDING GEAR BACK DOWN. THE PILOT SAID THAT HIS MAIN GEAR WERE DOWN, BUT WAS NOT SURE OF THE NOSE GEAR. THE PILOT ELECTED TO LAND AT HILL AIR FORCE BASE, OGDEN, UTAH. AN UNEVENTFUL APPROACH WAS ACCOMPLISHED. ON LANDING, THE AIRPLANE'S NOSE COWLING WAS SET DOWN ON THE RUNWAY. THE AIRPLANE SKIDDED DOWN THE RUNWAY ON ITS NOSE COWLING UNTIL IT CAME TO A STOP. AN EXAMINATION OF THE ACCIDENT AREA SHOWED BROKEN POWER POLES AND DOWNED POWER LINES IN THE AREA OF BTF. THE NOSE GEAR WAS FOUND WITH THE DOWNED POWER LINES. IT HAD BEEN BROKEN AFT. AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED THE BOTTOM PORTIONS OF THE BULKHEADS AND STRINGERS AFT OF THE AIRPLANE'S NOSE GEAR WERE BENT AND BROKEN AFT. THE PROPELLER BLADES WERE TWISTED TORSIONALLY AND BENT AFT AT THE TIPS. FLIGHT CONTROL CONTINUITY WAS CONFIRMED. AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE'S ENGINES, CONTROLS, AND OTHER SYSTEMS REVEALED NO ANOMALIES. ## 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 DEN03LA031](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN03LA031), Jan 9, 2003: Piper PA-34-200 (N16453), Bountiful, UT, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to maintain clearance from the power lines and his improper in flight planning and decision to maneuver on a go around without noting where the power lines were. Factors… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.