# Accident 20040522010089A: Wsk PZLM18B, Borah Peak, ID, May 22, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 22, 2004, 14:16 local time
- Place: Borah Peak, ID
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Operator: QTLG
- Location: 44.1283° N, 113.7783° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.1283&lon=-113.7783&mi=10
- Aircraft: N117BS, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N117BS-2007-06-25) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Wsk-Pzl Meilec PZL M18B (registry code 9810125, https://openairdocs.org/model/wsk-pzl-meilec-pzl-m18b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Wsk-Pzl-K AI-14R series (registry code 67205, https://openairdocs.org/engine/wsk-pzl-k-ai-14r-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: WSK PZLM18B
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 14,432 total, 2,234 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB SEA04LA095](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA04LA095) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040522010089A

## Narrative

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

(-23) AIRCRAFT BECAME MISSING WHEN IT DID NOT ARRIVE IN BOISE, IDAHO AT A PREDETERMINED TIME. THE PILOT WAS SCHEDULED TO UNDERGO TESTING AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS TO BE INSPECTED FOR THE PURPOSE OF GOING ON A CONTRACT FOR FIRE FIGHTING OPERATIONS WITH THE U.S. FOREST SERVICE. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED IN DILLON, MONTANA AND THE WEATHER IN THE DILLON AREA WAS VERY WINTERY CONDITIONS. THE PILOT TOLD HIS BOSS HE WOULD FOLLOW AN INTERSTATE TO IDAHO FALLS, IDAHO AND THEN GO ON TO BOISE. THE SEARCH FOR THE MISSING AIRCRAFT CENTERED AROUND RADAR PLOTS WHICH WERE RECORDED OF THE PATH OF FLIGHT AFTER THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED FROM DILLON. THE PILOT DID NOT FOLLOW THE INTERSTATE BUT WAS TRACKED ACROSS A MOUNTAINOUS ROUTE WITH THE PATH ENDING AT MT. BORAH IN CENTRAL IDAHO. A RANCHER ON HORSEBACK WAS RIDING IN THE VALLEY BELOW THE SITE OF THE ACCIDENT. HE REPORTED HEAVY SNOW STORMS DURING THE TIME THIS ACCIDENT WAS THOUGHT TO HAVE OCCURRED. HE SAW THE AIRCRAFT PASS OVER HIM ON A COURSE THAT WOULD TAKE HIM TO WHERE THE AIRCRAFT WAS EVENTUALLY FOUND. THE WRECKAGE WAS FOUND AT 10200 FEET ON THE SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN IN DEEP SNOW. THE SITE WILL BE INACCESSIBLE UNTIL LATE SUMMER. THE DATE OF THE PILOT'S LAST CHECK RIDE COULD NOT BE FOUND.

## 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 SEA04LA095](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA04LA095), May 22, 2004: WSK PZL Mielec PZL M-18B (N117BS), Borah Peak, ID, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate planning/decision, VFR into IMC, and his failure to maintain terrain clearance. Factors include mountainous terrain and instrument meteorological condition.

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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