# Accident 20040730026899A: Piper PA24, Rockville, IN, July 30, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 30, 2004, 18:00 local time
- Place: Rockville, IN
- Airport: Butler Fld Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Forced/Precautionary Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.7125° N, 87.4014° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.7125&lon=-87.4014&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5769P, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5769P-2008-06-27) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-24 (registry code 7102402, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming O&VO-360 series (registry code 41514, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-o-vo-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA24
- Reported engine: LYC O360*
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,769 total, 1,070 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI04LA202](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI04LA202) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040730026899A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON JULY 30TH, 2004, PIPER COMANCHE N5769P TOOK OFF FROM BUTLER FIELD AIRPORT (IN46) IN ROCKVILLE, INDIANA. THE PILOT IN COMMAND OF N5769P WAS MR. ROBERT DUANE HALE. MR. HALE HOLDS A PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE WITH INSTRUMENT PRIVILEGES. MR. HALE STATED THAT SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF FROM BUTLER FIELD AIRPORT, HE ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT TERRE HAUTE APPROACH CONTROL TO ACTIVATE A PREVIOUSLY FILED IFR FLIGHT PLAN. MR. HALE SAID HE WAS UNABLE TO ESTABLISH COMMUNICATIONS WITH TERRE HAUTE APPROACH CONTROL AND SUBSEQUENTLY DECIDED TO RETURN TO BUTLER FIELD AIRPORT FOR A LANDING. THE CLOSEST REPORTED WEATHER (TERRE HAUTE) AT THE TIME OF ACCIDENT WAS ESTIMATED TO BE FROM 600 TO 1,000 FOOT CEILINGS AND 1 3/4 AND 2 1/2 MILES VISIBILITY WITH LIGHT RAIN. TEMPERATURE WAS 21(C) AND DEWPOINT WAS 21(C), WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN CONDUCIVE TO ENGINE CARBURETOR ICING. MR. HALE STATED THAT DURING HIS APPROACH TO LAND, THE ENGINE OF HIS AIRCRAFT LOST POWER AND HE WAS FORCED TO MAKE AN EMERGENCY LANDING CLOSE TO THE AIRPORT. MR. HALE BELIEVES THE ENGINE LOST POWER DUE TO CARBURETOR ICING. AT APPROXIMATELY 1800 LOCAL, AFTER APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES ALOFT, THE AIRCRAFT LANDED IN A HEAVILY WOODED AREA AND RECEIVED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. MR. HALE STATED THAT HE REMAINED IN THE AIRCRAFT OVER NIGHT AND WALKED OUT OF THE WOODS ON SATURDAY MORNING. MR. HALE RECEIVED SERIOUS INJURIES FROM THE ACCIDENT. MR. HALE HAS BEEN COUNSELED WITH REGARDS TO OPERATING AIRCRAFT IN POTENTIAL CARBURETOR ICING CONDITIONS AND ALSO OPERATING TECHNIQUES FOR OBTAINING IFR FLIGHT PLAN CLEARANCES. DUE TO THE REMOTENESS OF THE CRASH SITE, THE AIRCRAFT RECOVERY PROCESS IS CURRENTLY ONGOING.

## 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 CHI04LA202](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI04LA202), Jul 30, 2004: Piper PA-24 (N5769P), Rockville, IN, substantial damage. Probable cause: The restriction of airflow in the carburetor due to a foreign substance blockage of the venturi. A contributing factor was the trees.

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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