# Accident 20090529006349A: Storch SSMK4, Escalante, UT, May 29, 2009

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 29, 2009, 08:55 local time
- Place: Escalante, UT
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 37.7758° N, 111.4189° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.7758&lon=-111.4189&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2898J, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N2898J-2010-01-07) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Storch Aviation Australia PTY SS-MK4 (registry code 05614P8, https://openairdocs.org/model/storch-aviation-australia-pty-ss-mk4) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG (registry code 99999, https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: STORCH SSMK4
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 7,000 total, 0 in this make and model, 0 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR09LA269](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR09LA269) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20090529006349A

## Narrative

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

(-23) PILOT WAS ON A SIGHT SEEING FLIGHT WITH A FRIEND AND FLYING BELOW THE CANYON RIDGE LINE.  THE PILOT CAME TO A "Y" IN THE CANYON AND TURNED LEFT.  THE TERRAIN PREVENTED THE PILOT FROM SEEING THE POWER POLES.  IN ADDITION, THE SUN WOULD HAVE HINDERED SEEING THE POLES AT THAT TIME OF DAY ALONG WITH WIRES DRAPED THROUGH THE CANYON.  THE LEFT WING STRUCK ONE WIRE.  TWO STRANDED ALUMINUM WIRES APPROXIMATELY 3/4 INCH DIAMETER WERE CUT AND ANOTHER WIRE APPEARS TO HAVE PULLED AND IS HANGING LOWER.  THE AIRCRAFT THEN FILL TO THE GROUND RESULTING IN TWO FATALITIES.

## 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 WPR09LA269](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR09LA269), May 29, 2009: Storch Aviation Australia PTY SS-MK4 (N2898J), Boulder, UT, substantial damage, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from power lines during low altitude maneuvering.

## Other reports on N2898J (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Incident 20060414007629I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060414007629I), Apr 14, 2006: SSMK4 (N2898J), Boulder, UT, Minor damage. (-23) The pilot took off from a dirt road at Boulder, Utah at approximately 11:15 MDT on the day of the incident for a local flight for the purpose of trying…

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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