# NTSB CEN10FA162: Maule M-6-235, N7613X, Bennett, CO, January 30, 2010 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Field investigation · Final report - Date: January 30, 2010, 11:00 local (18:00 UTC) - Place: Bennett, CO - Coordinates: 39.695278, -104.432502 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6953&lon=-104.4325&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Maneuvering](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/450) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Low altitude operation/event](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/220) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 7, 2011 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: FAA - NTSB case key (mKey): 75532 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN10FA162 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/75532/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=75532 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN10FA162 ## Probable cause The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from a utility line while maneuvering. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Info processing/decision: decision making/judgment](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041520): Personnel issues › Action/decision · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Maule M-6-235, 4 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041520/cases.md?model=5460160), [All aircraft, 3,098 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041520/cases.md) - [Attention/monitoring: task monitoring/vigilance](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02021520): Personnel issues › Psychological · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Maule M-6-235, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02021520/cases.md?model=5460160), [All aircraft, 330 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02021520/cases.md) - [Object/animal/substance: wire](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022032): Environmental issues › Physical environment · Effect on equipment; cases with it: [Maule M-6-235, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022032/cases.md?model=5460160), [All aircraft, 588 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022032/cases.md) - [Wing structure: ailerons](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035751): Aircraft › Aircraft structures · Damaged/degraded; cases with it: [Maule M-6-235, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035751/cases.md?model=5460160), [All aircraft, 12 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035751/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Low altitude operation/event](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/220) (defining event); cases with it: [Maule M-6-235, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/220/sequence.md?model=5460160), [All aircraft, 780 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/220/sequence.md) - [Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Off-field or emergency landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440); cases with it: [Maule M-6-235, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440/sequence.md?model=5460160), [All aircraft, 3,365 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440/sequence.md) ## Analysis The flight was flying along a creek looking for a place to land and go hiking, when the pilot thought he had struck a tree. The pilot continued to fly for about 17 miles before landing at a privately owned airport and placed the airplane in a friend’s hangar. Authorities became aware of the accident about six weeks later after airplane parts were found by property owners along the creek near a utility line. The parts included the left wing tip, left aileron, and portions of a wing spar. Examination of the impact site and wreckage indicated the airplane impacted a single unpowered and unmarked utility line about 35 feet above the creek. The utility line crossed the creek perpendicularly and the creek bed was lined on both sides by trees up to about 60 feet tall. ## Factual narrative HISTORY OF FLIGHT On January 30, 2010, about 1100 mountain standard time, a Maule M-6-235 airplane, N7613X, was substantially damaged when it impacted a power line near Bennett, Colorado. The airline transport certified pilot and a passenger were not injured. The personal flight was being operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 91 without a flight plan. The planned local flight originated at Erie Municipal Airport (EIK), Erie, Colorado, about 1030 with EIK as the intended destination. The flight ended at Everitt Airport (1CO8), Parker, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. Property owners reported a downed utility line on their property on January 31, 2010. The un-powered utility line, owned by the Intermountain Rural Electric Association (IREA) of Colorado, was repaired on February 1, 2010. Repairmen reported the top of one of the utility poles was broken off and the wire had separated from several poles. Investigators became aware of the accident when the same property owners found airplane parts on their property about six weeks after the accident and reported it to authorities. On March 18, 2010, investigators responded to the scene and found the left wingtip, left aileron, and portions of a wing spar from an airplane. Investigators located the left wing at a repair facility in Greeley, Colorado, and subsequently contacted the pilot. The rest of the airplane was found in a private hangar at 1CO8. The pilot told investigators he was flying along a creek bed, looking for a place to land and hike, when the left wing hit what he thought was a tree limb. The pilot continued to fly and, according to the passenger, he phoned a friend who lived at 1CO8 and made arrangements to land there. After landing at 1CO8 the pilot placed the airplane in his friend’s hanger. The pilot and passenger returned to the area where they thought the impact occurred and walked for several hours looking for the airplane parts. The terrain between the point of impact and 1CO8 was privately owned open pasture and farm land. PERSONNEL INFORMATION The pilot, age 50, held an Airline Transport Pilot certificate with a rating for airplane multi-engine land and Commercial Privileges for airplane single engine land. His last Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) first-class medical certificate was issued in November 11, 2009, with no limitations. A review of the pilot’s logbook showed he had accumulated 12,947 total hours, 2,041 single engine airplane hours, and 164 hours in this make and model of airplane. The pilot’s last flight review occurred on March, 25, 2009 in a Boeing 737 simulator. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The 1998-model Maule M-6-235 airplane, serial number 7498C, was a high wing single engine airplane, with fixed main landing gear and tail wheel, and was configured for four occupants. The airplane was powered by a Lycoming IO-540 engine, serial number L-23815-48A, rated at 235 horsepower, driving aHartzell two bladed controllable pitch propeller. The airplane was equipped with “tundra” tires designed for landing on unimproved surfaces. The last annual inspection of the airframe and engine was on March 23, 2009, at a total airframe and tachometer time of 797 hours. METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION Weather at Front Range Airport (FTG),Watkins, Colorado, at 1145 on the day of the accident was reported as 48 degrees Fahrenheit, 50 miles visibility, scattered clouds at 25,000 feet, and winds 100 degrees at five knots. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION The debris field was located about four and a half miles south of Bennett, Colorado, about nine miles southeast of FTG, and about 17 miles northeast of 1CO8 at about 5,525 feet mean sea level (MSL). When investigators arrived on scene on March 18, the top wire (one of four) of the unmarked utility line showed damage mid-span between two utility poles and had at least one wire strand broken. The damage to the wire was located directly above a small creek. The utility line ran east-west and crossed the creek bed perpendicularly about 30 to 40 feet above the ground. There were trees lining the north-south running creek bed, which appeared to be 30 to 60 feet tall. The band of trees followed the creek for several miles in both directions and varied in width from a few feet wide to several hundred feet wide. The terrain away from the creek bed was open pasture and rural farm land for several miles. A left wingtip, left aileron, pieces of a red plastic lens, and portions of a wing spar and wing skin were found scattered in an area about 50 feet wide, and 200 feet long aligned on a 180 degree heading, with the northern most debris lying under the damaged utility line. The wingtip was red and white and had Maule painted on it. The airplane debris was recovered and components were matched to a damaged left wing located at Beegles Aircraft, Greeley, Colorado. The outboard section of the rear spar was found to have separated from the wing and was about 24 inches in length. There was an approximately 2.5 inch curved indention on the bottom edge of the spar section, the center of which was seven inches inboard of the outboard end. There was a straight impact mark starting at the center of the curved indention and proceeding outboard and upward to the top, outboard end of the spar section. The angle measured from the bottom of the spar edge to the impact mark was about 30 degrees. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Code of Federal Regulations, Part 91, paragraph 13 (a) states: Aircraft operations for the purpose of air navigation. No person may operate an aircraft in a careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of another. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N7613X](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N7613X), registered now, S/N 7498C, built 1988 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: MAULE M-6-235 - Registry model: [Maule M-6-235](https://openairdocs.org/model/maule-m-6-235) (registry code 5460160) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming IO-540 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-540-series) (registry code 41530, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 7498C - Airframe hours: 821 - Engines: LYCOMING IO-540 SER 235 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Hoesel Cameron - Registered owner: Hoesel Cameron - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, March 23, 2009 - Departed: EIK, Erie Municipal, CO - Destination: 1CO8, Parker, CO ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 50; injuries: none; airline transport, commercial, private; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, without waivers/limitations; last flight review May 25, 2009; seat: left; flight hours: 12,947 total, 164 in this make and model, 125 in the last 90 days, 34 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 100° at 5 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 48 °F, dew point 14 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: FTG, 9 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20100130029469A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20100130029469A), Jan 30, 2010: Maule M-6-235, Bennett, CO, Substantial damage. Pilot cameron hoesel while flying low along kiowa creek 3 miles south of Bennett Colorado did strike a powerline causing the top four feet of one power pole to… ## Docket (9 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 30, 2010, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=75532. 1.6 MB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 545 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329571&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - Pilot Statement (item 2, .PDF, 53 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329572&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%20Statement-Redacted.PDF - Passenger Statement (item 3, .PDF, 95 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329573&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Passenger%20Statement-Redacted.PDF - Photo - Wingtip (item 4, .PDF, 113 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329578&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%20-%20Wingtip-Master.PDF - Photo - Left Wing (item 5, .PDF, 186 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329599&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%20-%20Left%20Wing-Master.PDF - Photo - Wing Spar (item 6, .PDF, 103 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329611&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%20-%20Wing%20Spar-Master.PDF - Photo - Utility Lines (Looking North) (item 7, .PDF, 459 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329612&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%20-%20Utility%20Lines%20(Looking%20North)-Master.PDF - Photo - Utility Line Damage (item 8, .PDF, 41 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329613&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%20-%20Utility%20Line%20Damage-Master.PDF - Release of Aircraft Wreckage, NTSB Form 6120.15 (item 9, .PDF, 37 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40329635&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Release%20of%20Aircraft%20Wreckage,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.15-Redacted.PDF 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.