# Accident 20120907020849A: Piper PA-18-150, Mccarty Fjord, AK, September 7, 2012

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 7, 2012, 19:45 local time
- Place: Mccarty Fjord, AK
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 59.5622° N, 150.3533° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=59.5622&lon=-150.3533&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3214D, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N3214D) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-18-150 (registry code 7101828, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-18-150) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-18-150
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 6,200 total, 4,500 in this make and model, 55 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC12LA103](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC12LA103) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20120907020849A

## Narrative

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

THE PIC WENT TO MCCARTY FJORD FOR A  FISHING TRIP. UPON REACHING THE FJORD HE OVERFLEW THE BEACH AREA WHICH HE HAS LANDED ON MANY TIMES BEFORE BETWEEN 400 TO 500 FEET TO VISUALLY CHECK THE BEACH BEFORE LANDING. AFTER CHECKING THE BEACH AND DETERMINING THAT IT WAS GOOD TO LAND HE CONTINUED AROUND TO LAND. ON DOWN-WIND HE APPLIED CARBURETOR HEAT AND REDUCED POWER, TURNED BASE THEN FINAL. HE SAID THAT THE ENGINE DIDN'T SOUND RIGHT AND ADDED POWER BUT THE ENGINE WAS NOT RUNNING. HE SWITHCED  FUEL TANKS AND PUMPED THE THROTTLE BUT THE ENGINE WOULD NOT RESTART. HE COULD NOT MAKE THE PART OF THE BEACH THAT WAS GOOD FOR LANDING AND THE ONLY ALTERNATIVE WAS TO LAND IN THE WATER. THE PART OF THE BEACH THAT HE COULD HAVE MADE WAS FULL OF BIG BOULDERS. THE AIRCRAFT FLIPPED OVER ON ITS BACK UPON LANDING IN THE WATER. THE PIC GOT OUT OF THE AIRCRAFT ONTO THE BOTTOM OF THE WING WITH NO INJURY. THE PIC GRABBED HIS SLEEPING BAG, TENT AND ELT OUT OF THE BACK OF THE AIRCRAFT AND SWAM TO SHORE. THE AIRCRAFT, FLOATING BY WAY OF THE TUNDRA TIRES, DRIFTED OUT TO SEA AND WAS A TOTAL LOSS.

## 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 ANC12LA103](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC12LA103), Sep 8, 2012: Piper PA-18-150 (N3214D), Homer, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because the engine could not be examined because of the extent of time in salt water.

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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