ANC15LA011

The pilot was taking photographs over a remote area. About 20 minutes into the flight, he noticed the smell of smoke in the cockpit and immediately began a return to the airport. Shortly thereafter, the engine began to lose power, and the pilot was unable to maintain altitude. He performed a forced landing in an area of heavily wooded terrain. After the airplane came to rest, the pilot stated that there was a small fire in the engine cowling that he was able to extinguish by packing snow into the cowling. Due to the remote location of the accident site, the airplane was not recovered or examined after the accident, and the reason for the fire and loss of engine power could not be determined. .

On February 9, 2015, about 1025 Alaska standard time, a Cessna 180 airplane, N9280C, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing, following a possible in-flight fire and partial loss of engine power about 5 miles southeast of Glennallen, Alaska. The certificated airline transport pilot was not injured. The privately owned airplane was being operated by the pilot as a visual flight rules local personal flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 when the accident occurred. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from the Gulkana Airport, Gulkana, Alaska, about 1000. In a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, the pilot stated that the purpose of the flight was to take photographs in an area east of Glennallen. About 20 minutes into the flight, he noticed the smell of smoke in the cockpit, and immediately began a return to the airport. Shortly thereafter, the engine began to lose power, and the pilot was unable to maintain altitude. He performed a forced landing in an area of heavily wooded terrain. After the airplane came to rest, the pilot stated that there was a small fire in the engine cowling that he was able to extinguish by packing snow into the cowling. The airplane was equipped with a Spidertracks satellite tracking system, which transmits real-time position reports of the airplane, capable of being viewed from any computer. After being alerted that the airplane had gone down, a local pilot in the area landed near the accident site, and picked up the pilot. Due to the remoteness of the accident site, the airplane was not recovered and the NTSB IIC was not able to examine the airframe or engine.