# NTSB ANC97LA079: Piper J-5, N31164, Wasilla, AK, May 29, 1997 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 28, 1997, 21:45 local (May 29, 1997, 05:45 UTC) - Place: Wasilla, AK - Location: 61.5785° N, 149.4763° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Wasilla, AK, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.5785&lon=-149.4763&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report November 10, 1998 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 3011 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC97LA079 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/3011/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC97LA079 ## Probable cause The loss of engine power for an undetermined reason, and the noncertificated pilot's decision to perform a go-around after a suitable landing site had been attained. A factor associated with the accident was the rough and uneven terrain. ## 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 landing - In flight collision with terrain/water, emergency landing - in-flight planning/decision - improper, pilot in command (cause) - terrain condition - rough/uneven (contributing factor) ## Analysis The pilot reported a loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing in a gravel pit. He said he did not know why the engine quit, but said one of the fuel tanks still had fuel. Prior to landing in the gravel pit, the pilot said he made an emergency approach to an airstrip, and was just about to land on the runway, when the engine started again. He said he should have landed anyway, but elected to go around and fly to his own airstrip. Soon after he left the airstrip, the engine quit, and he landed in the gravel pit. A state trooper who interviewed the pilot reported the pilot told him he had just changed two cylinders on the airplane's engine, and was on a test flight. The noncertificated pilot is not an aviation mechanic, and in his report he did not indicate he had any flight experience, or that the airplane had received any of the required inspections. He did relate that he routinely flies the airplane from his private, rural airstrip. ## Factual narrative On May 28, 1997, about 2100 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Piper J-5 airplane, N31164, sustained substantial damage following a loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing in a gravel pit near Wasilla, Alaska. The non certificated pilot was not injured. The local, 14 CFR Part 91 flight operated in visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan was filed. The pilot was interviewed on the telephone by the NTSB investigator-in-charge on May 29. The pilot related that he is not a certificated pilot, and that he typically operates the accident airplane from his rural private airstrip, located near Wasilla. He said he departed his airstrip about 2000, and was flying locally when the engine surged, and lost power. He said he tried carburetor heat, but that did not restore power. He made a successful approach to the Higher Road Airstrip, and was approximately 5 feet above the runway's surface, when the engine regained power. The pilot said he should have landed anyway, but elected to climb and return to his own airstrip. Shortly after passing over the end of the runway, the engine again lost all power, and the pilot made a hard, forced landing in a nearby gravel pit. The pilot said he was unsure what caused the loss of engine power, but believes it may have been fuel starvation. He said the left fuel tank had fuel, but thinks the right may have been empty. An Alaska State Trooper responded to the accident site and located the pilot at the nearby Walmart store in Wasilla. According to the trooper's report, the pilot said he had just put two new cylinders on the airplane's engine, and he needed to fly the airplane for two hours, but had engine trouble and had to land. The trooper also noted that one witness had observed the airplane flying very erratic and low around his house, and the witness thought that, at least once, the airplane was going to hit the house. The pilot was not a certificated airman or aviation mechanic. His report to the NTSB indicated no flight time, or that any of the required maintenance inspections had been performed on the airplane. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N31164](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N31164-2006-02-23), registration cancelled 2006-02-23, S/N 5-323, built 1940 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Piper J-5 - Registry model: [Piper J5A](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-j5a) (registry code 7100702) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental A&C75 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c75-series) (registry code 17005, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 5-323 - Engines: unknown - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Mark A. Cizek - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 38; medical: unknown, unknown; seat: front ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: calm - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 50 °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 19970528015769A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970528015769A), May 28, 1997: Piper J5A, Wasilla, AK, Substantial damage. (.4) On may 28, 1997, about 2100 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Piper J-5 airplane, N31164, sustained substantial damage following a loss of engine… 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.