- Date
- August 13, 1999, 19:00 local (Aug 14, 1999, 03:00 UTC)
- Place
- Anchorage, AK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Standing
- Aircraft
- N96921Taylorcraft BC12-D
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 22, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19990813026299A
- Case key
- 47325
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 planning/preparation, and improper starting procedure.
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 commercial certificated pilot landed on a remote road next to a river to fish. While preparing to depart, he pulled the airplane onto the road and set the parking brake. The pilot said he turned the magnetos on, and bumped the throttle slightly open. He then spun the propeller by hand. The engine started, and the airplane began to move forward. Before the pilot could enter the airplane, it traveled about 150 feet, off the roadway, and into a ditch. The right wing struck several bushes, and the airplane received damage to both right wing lift struts.
Factual narrative
On August 13, 1999, about 1900 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Taylorcraft BC12-D airplane, N96921, sustained substantial damage while the pilot was starting the airplane, about 27 miles west of Anchorage, Alaska, at latitude 61 degrees, 16 minutes north, and longitude 150 degrees, 53.5 minutes west. The airplane was being started to begin a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight by the pilot. The commercial certificated pilot was not on board the airplane, and was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed.
During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), on September 3, 1999, the pilot reported he landed on a remote road, next to the Theodore River, to fish. While preparing to depart, he pulled the airplane onto the road and set the parking brake. The pilot said he turned the magnetos on, and bumped the throttle slightly open. He then spun the propeller by hand. The engine started, and the airplane began to move forward. Before the pilot could enter the airplane, it traveled about 150 feet, off the roadway, and into a ditch. The right wing struck several bushes, and the airplane received damage to both right wing lift struts.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N96921
- Reported as
- Taylorcraft BC12-D
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 9221
- Airframe hours
- 4,885
- Engine
- Continental A65-8, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Philip J. Baldwin
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 6, 1999 · 10 hours before
- Destination
- Z41 · 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
- 27
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 1,490 total · 11 in this make and model · 260 as pilot in command · 225 in the last 90 days · 85 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 100 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- 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.