# Accident 20080403014119A: Piper PA22, Three Forks, MT, April 3, 2008

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 3, 2008, 17:05 local time
- Place: Three Forks, MT
- Airport: Three Forks
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 45.8825° N, 111.5639° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=45.8825&lon=-111.5639&mi=10
- Aircraft: N1139C (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA22
- Reported engine: LYC O320A2B
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 420 total, 47 in this make and model, 31 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB SEA08CA102](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA08CA102) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080403014119A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON APRIL 3, 2008, AT 1705 MDT, A PIPER PA-22 WITH CONVENTIONAL LANDING GEAR CONVERSION, N1139C, REGISTERED TO THE PILOT ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ GROUND LOOPED WHILE LANDING ON RUNWAY 20 AT THREE FORKS AIRPORT (9S5) THREE FORKS, MONTANA WHILE ON A PERSONAL/TRAINING FLIGHT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME WITH WINDS REPORTED AT 260 DEGREES, SUSTAINED WINDS AT 11 KNOTS AND GUSTS AT 20 KNOTS. THE AIRCRAFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED, AND THE PILOT WAS NOT INJURED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT TOWNSEND AIRPORT (8U8) TOWNSEND, MONTANA AT 1630.

## 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 SEA08CA102](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA08CA102), Apr 3, 2008: Piper PA-22/20 (N1139C), Three Forks, MT, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate compensation for wind conditions during landing. A gusting crosswind was a contributing factor.

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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