# NTSB ANC06LA056: Piper PA-18, N4167Z, Naknek, AK, May 19, 2006 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 19, 2006, 07:30 local (15:30 UTC) - Place: Naknek, AK - Coordinates: 58.962776, -156.93222 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=58.9628&lon=-156.9322&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 3 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 28, 2006 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA-AL-ANC FSDO 03 - NTSB case key (mKey): 63725 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC06LA056 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/63725/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC06LA056 ## Probable cause A loss of engine power during cruise flight for an undetermined reason, which resulted in a forced landing and subsequent collision with high vegetation and the ground. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power, cruise - reason for occurrence undetermined (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - In flight collision with terrain/water, emergency descent/landing - terrain condition - high vegetation ## Analysis The private certificated pilot was in cruise flight about 1,000 feet above ground level (agl), when the engine began to lose rpm. The pilot said the engine gauges appeared to be normal, but the rpm kept decreasing. The pilot said he performed all emergency procedures, including application of carburetor heat, but the airplane could not sustain level flight. He turned toward a remote airstrip, and prepared for an emergency landing. The pilot said the airplane collided with alders and then bounced off the ground, coming to rest near the end of runway 13 at the airstrip, facing the opposite direction of flight. The airplane received structural damage to the fuselage, empennage, and wings. The pilot was unable to determine what precipitated the loss of engine power, and the engine was not examined by NTSB or FAA personnel. ## Factual narrative On May 19, 2006, about 0730 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Piper PA-18 airplane, N4167Z, sustained substantial damage when it collided with brush and the ground following a loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing, about 13 miles north of Naknek, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country 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 two passengers, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight originated at the Naknek Airport about 0710, en route to a lodge on the Alagnak River, and no flight plan was filed. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on May 19, the pilot reported that he was in cruise flight, about 1,000 feet above ground level (agl), when the engine began to lose rpm. The pilot said the engine gauges appeared to be normal, but the rpm decreased from 2,300 to 1,000 rpm. The pilot said he performed all emergency procedures, including application of carburetor heat, but the airplane could not sustain level flight. He turned toward the Diamond J airstrip, located along the Kvichak River, and prepared for an emergency landing. The pilot said the airplane collided with alders and then bounced off the ground, coming to rest near the end of runway 13 at the airstrip, facing the opposite direction of flight. The airplane received structural damage to the fuselage, empennage, and wings. The pilot reported that the weather conditions consisted of overcast skies about 1,100 feet, with a temperature of about 45 degrees F, with no visible moisture. He was unable to determine what precipitated the loss of engine power. The airplane was not examined by NTSB or Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) personnel. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N4167Z](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4167Z), registered now, S/N 18-8349, built 1965 (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: 18-8349 - Engines: Lycoming O-320 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Charles L. Summerville III - Registered owner: David P. Byrd - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: 5NK, Naknek, AK - Airport: 9Z7, Diamond J, runway 13, 800 × 50 ft, dirt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 40; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land, single-engine sea; medical: class 2, without waivers/limitations; last flight review May 1, 2006; seat: front; flight hours: 2,400 total, 400 in this make and model, 20 in the last 90 days, 20 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 180° at 10 knots - Visibility: 15 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 48 °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 20060519010439A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060519010439A), May 19, 2006: Piper PA18150, Naknek, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) Aircraft lost engine power. Forced landing at old diamond j airstrip near Naknek AK. ## Other investigations on N4167Z (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 ANC01LA116](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC01LA116), Aug 6, 2001: Piper PA-18 (N4167Z), Anaktuvuk Pass, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: A failure of the landing gear strut assembly due to corrosion. A factor in the accident was the pilot's inadequate maintenance of the airplane. 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.