- Date
- December 23, 2010, 14:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Clear, AK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N40283Piper PA-18-150
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Fuel contamination
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 26, 2011
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20101223054719A
- Case key
- 78076
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to water/ice in the fuel system.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that while in level cruise flight, the airplane's engine began to lose power, and then lost all power. He said he was unable to restart the engine, and selected a snow and tree-covered area as a forced landing site. During the forced landing, the airplane's left wing collided with a tree, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and left wing. He said that at the time of the accident the outside air temperature was minus 22 degrees F, and that during his postaccident inspection of the airplane he discovered that the engine fuel gascolator filter had become blocked by ice crystals. He stated that there were no preaccident mechanical problems with the airplane, and noted that the accident might have been prevented if he had removed the gascolator during his preflight to check for ice crystals, or preheated the engine, and then drained the water from the gascolator.
Factual narrative
The private pilot reported that while in level cruise flight, the airplane's engine began to lose power, and then lost all power. He said he was unable to restart the engine, and selected a snow and tree-covered area as a forced landing site. During the forced landing, the airplane's left wing collided with a tree, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and left wing. The pilot said that at the time of the accident the outside air temperature was minus 22 degrees F, and that during his postaccident inspection of the airplane he discovered that the engine fuel gascolator filter had become blocked by ice crystals. The pilot indicated in his written report to the NTSB that there were no preaccident mechanical problems with the airplane, and noted that the accident might have been prevented if he had removed the gascolator during his preflight to check for ice crystals, or preheated the engine, and then drained the water from the gascolator.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N40283
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-7509119
- Airframe hours
- 2,102
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320 SERIES, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Mark A. Keech
- Registered owner
- Mark A. Keech
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 4, 2010 · 134 hours before
- Departed
- Minchumina, AK
- Destination
- AK28 · Fairbanks, AK
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 37
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 6,300 total · 2,000 in this make and model · 6,300 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -22 °F
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on February 1, 2011, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 630 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.