# Accident 20071010022229A: Piper PA22, Townsend, MT, October 10, 2007

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 10, 2007, 10:50 local time
- Place: Townsend, MT
- Airport: Townsend
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 46.4810° N, 111.3391° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=46.4810&lon=-111.3391&mi=10
- Aircraft: N1139C (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA22
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 0 total, 10 in this make and model, 121 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB SEA08CA009](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA08CA009) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20071010022229A

## Narrative

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

(-23) AT APPROXIMATELY 10:50 MDT ON OCTOBER 10, 2007, AIRCRAFT N1139C, A 1953 PA-22, REGISTERED TO ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, GROUND LOOPED AT THE TOWNSEND, MT AIRPORT (K8U8), WHILE ENGAGED IN TAIL WHEEL LANDING PRACTICE IN ORDER FOR THE OWNER/STUDENT TO OBTAIN A TAIL WHEEL ENDORSEMENT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, WITH APPROXIMATE CROSSWIND (BASED ON LANDING RUNWAY 16) OF 45 DEGREES FROM THE LEFT BETWEEN 5 AND 10 KNOTS. A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. PILOT EXECUTED A WHEEL LANDING, THEN EXPERIENCED DEVIATIONS FROM RUNWAY CENTERLINE AS PILOT LOWERED THE TAIL. THE CFI ASSISTED AND STABILIZED THE AIRCRAFT, AT WHICH THE STUDENT AGAIN TOOK CONTROL. AIRCRAFT AGAIN DIVERTED FROM CENTERLINE AND WAS BEYOND THE POINT WHERE THE CFI WAS ABLE TO RECOVER. THE AIRCRAFT DID A 180 DEGREE TURN TO THE LEFT AND STOPPED STRADDLING THE LEFT EDGE OF THE RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE, AND THE CERTIFICATED FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR AND OWNER/PRIVATE PILOT WERE NOT INJURED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT GALLATIN FIELD (KBZN), BELGRADE MONTANA AT 9:30 AM MDT.

## 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 SEA08CA009](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA08CA009), Oct 10, 2007: Piper PA-22/20 (N1139C), Townsend, MT, substantial damage. Probable cause: The private pilot/student failed to maintain directional control during the landing roll, and remedial action was not possible by the flight instructor which resulted in an inadvertent ground loop.

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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