# NTSB ANC05CA007: Piper PA-18, N9146D, Wasilla, AK, October 15, 2004 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: October 15, 2004, 13:00 local (21:00 UTC) - Place: Wasilla, AK - Coordinates: 61.602779, -149.574996 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.6028&lon=-149.5750&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 24, 2005 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 60403 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC05CA007 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/60403/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC05CA007 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the landing approach, which resulted in a stall and an uncontrolled descent to the runway. A factor contributing to the accident was an inadvertent stall. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, approach - vfr pattern - base leg/base to final - airspeed(vs) - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - stall - inadvertent, pilot in command (contributing factor) - In flight collision with terrain/water, descent - uncontrolled - terrain condition - runway ## Analysis The private certificated pilot was making a left turn from a base leg entry to the final approach course for landing. The pilot indicated that during the turn, he was about 100 feet above ground level (agl) and over the threshold of the airstrip. He said that he added engine power to arrest his descent, but the engine rpm did not respond for about 3 to 4 seconds. Within that time period, the airplane stalled and descended to the ground. He leveled the wings before runway contact, and the airplane collided with the runway surface in a wings-level attitude. The main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane received damage to the left wing lift struts, the left wingtip, and the propeller. ## Factual narrative On October 15, 2004, about 1300 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Piper PA-18 airplane, N9146D, sustained substantial damage when it stalled and descended to the runway during the base-to-final turn for landing at Kalmbach Airstrip, located about 2 miles northwest of Wasilla, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) local area personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The airplane was operated by the pilot. The private certificated pilot, and the sole passenger, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight originated at the Wasilla Airport, about 1230. No flight plan was filed, nor was one required. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on October 15, the pilot reported that he was maneuvering for landing on runway 03 at the Kalmbach Airstrip. The airstrip has a gravel surface on a 030/210 magnetic orientation, and is about 3,000 feet long and 100 feet wide. The pilot indicated that he was making a left turn from a base leg entry to the final approach course for landing, when the airplane stalled from about 75 feet above the ground. He leveled the wings before runway contact, and the airplane collided with the runway surface in a wings-level attitude. The main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane received damage to the left wing lift struts, the left wingtip, and the propeller. In the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1) submitted by the pilot, the pilot reported that during the left turn from base leg to final, he was about 100 feet above ground level (agl) and over the threshold of the airstrip. He indicated that he added engine power to arrest his descent, but the engine rpm did not respond for about 3 to 4 seconds. Within that time period, the airplane stalled and descended to the ground. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N9146D](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N9146D), registered now, S/N 18-6536, built 1958 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Piper PA-18 - Registry model: [Piper PA-18-150](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-18-150) (registry code 7101828) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18-6536 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-A2A reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Paul G. smith - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: PAWS, Wasilla, AK - Destination: 43AK, Wasilla, AK - Airport: 43AK, Kalmbach Strip, runway 03 ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 48; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, single-engine land; medical: class 3; flight hours: 1,651 total, 1,256 in this make and model, 32 in the last 90 days, 13 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 30 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 45 °F ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20041015025049A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20041015025049A), Oct 15, 2004: Piper PA18150, Wasilla, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) The airman stated than on left downwind he applied carburetor heat and began a descent. During the left base turn he applied power and the engine was not… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.