- Date
- May 27, 1998, 14:10 local (22:10 UTC)
- Place
- Paxson, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N1322BLuscombe 8A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 17, 1999
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19980527011039A
- Case key
- 3146
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
A loss of engine power due to a failure of the engine's number 3 intake valve. A factor in the accident was the unsuitable terrain for a forced landing.
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 made a forced landing on a highway following a partial loss of engine power. He stated that after the initial power loss, he attempted to divert to an alternate airport for landing. The airplane's engine continued to lose power, and the airplane was no longer able to maintain altitude. He selected a portion of the highway as an emergency landing area. During the landing roll, the right wing struck an overhanging tree, and the airplane turned to the right and struck an embankment. The airplane's wings and fuselage sustained substantial damage. A postaccident engine inspection revealed a broken intake valve on the number 3 cylinder.
Factual narrative
On May 27, 1998, about 1410 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Luscombe 8A airplane, N1322B, sustained substantial damage during an emergency landing on a highway, about 5 miles south of Paxson, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal flight under Title 14 CFR Part 91 when the accident occurred. The certificated airline transport pilot, and the one passenger aboard, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated at the Cantwell Airport, Cantwell, at 1230.
During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, on May 28, at 1015, the pilot reported that while in cruise flight, the engine began to run rough. The pilot said he attempted to divert to the Paxson Airport for landing, but the airplane's engine continued to lose power, and the airplane was no longer able to maintain altitude. The pilot selected a portion of the Richardson Highway as an emergency landing area. During the landing roll, the right wing struck an overhanging tree, and the airplane turned to the right and struck an embankment.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings and fuselage.
The pilot noted in his written statement dated June 6, that a broken intake valve was discovered on the number 3 cylinder during a postaccident engine examination.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1322B
- Reported as
- Luscombe 8A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 5949
- Airframe hours
- 2,608
- Engine
- Continental A-65-8, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- John U. Twiss
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 25, 1998 · 33 hours before
- Departed
- TTW · Cantwell, AK
- Destination
- GKN · Gulkana, 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
- 54
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 11,500 total · 100 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 25 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 61 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.