- Date
- December 20, 2004, 10:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Terreton, ID
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N2898DChristen Industries A-1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 30, 2005
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA, FSDO
- FAA report
- 20041220032299A
- Case key
- 60759
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 adequate airspeed while maneuvering which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent collision with 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 purpose of the public use flight was to hunt coyotes. The pilot reported that the airplane was at an altitude of 50 to 100 feet agl. After the gunner shot one of a group of three coyotes and wounded another, he circled the airplane left to line up for another shot at the wounded coyote. The turn was made at 60 knots with three notches of flaps. After completing the left turn, the "aircraft seemed to lose elevator control," the tail pitched up, and the nose went down. The pilot added full power and had just enough time to raise the nose before the airplane hit the ground. The forward section of the lower fuselage was crushed upward. The main landing gear separated, and the right wing separated at the wing root and rotated forward.
Factual narrative
On December 20, 2004, approximately 1000 mountain standard time, a Christen Industries A-1 airplane, N2898D, impacted terrain following a loss of control while maneuvering about 8 miles north of Terreton, Idaho. The airplane sustained substantial damage, and the commercial pilot and the passenger received serious injuries. The airplane was operated by the Idaho Woolgrowers Association, Boise, Idaho, under contract to the United States Department of Agriculture. The purpose of the public use flight was to hunt coyotes. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a company flight plan was filed. The flight departed from Rexburg Madison County Airport, Rexburg, Idaho, at 0815 for the local area flight.
The pilot reported to an NTSB investigator that the airplane was at an altitude of 50 to 100 feet agl. After the gunner shot one of a group of three coyotes and wounded another, he circled the airplane left to line up for another shot at the wounded coyote. The turn was made at 60 knots with three notches of flaps. After completing the left turn, the "aircraft seemed to lose elevator control," the tail pitched up, and the nose went down. The pilot added full power and had just enough time to raise the nose before the airplane hit the ground. The forward section of the lower fuselage was crushed upward. The main landing gear separated, and the right wing separated at the wing root and rotated forward.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2898D
- Reported as
- Christen Industries A-1
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1019
- Airframe hours
- 7,003
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-CIG, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public aircraft · Public use
- Operator
- USDA, APHIS, Wildlife Services
- Registered owner
- Idaho Woolgrowers Association
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · December 13, 2004 · 14 hours before
- Departed
- REX · Rexburg, ID
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
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
- 51
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- November 23, 2004
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 3,307 total · 2,414 in this make and model · 3,188 as pilot in command · 107 in the last 90 days · 42 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Temperature
- 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.02 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N2898D · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.