- Date
- July 28, 1991, 10:40 local (18:40 UTC)
- Place
- Palmer, AK
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N7684HPiper PA-12
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 24, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19910728030379A
- Case key
- 5589
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 failure to maintain airspeed and inadvertent stall during low level maneuvering flight. Contributing to the accident was the high terrain.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot stated that, while maneuvering over the glacier, he stalled and lost control of the airplane. The airplane crashed at the 1,500 foot level. At the time of the accident, the pilot was operating with an expired medical certificate.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7684H
- Reported as
- Piper PA-12
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 12-573
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290, 135 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Hill, Melvin R.
- Registered owner
- Hill, Melvin R.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 31, 1990 · 75 hours before
- Departed
- Z16 · Wasilla, 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
- 49
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Expired
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 600 total · 75 in this make and model · 60 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 25 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 45 °F
- Observed at
- ANC, 50 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.