# NTSB SEA06CA009: Cessna A185F, N7377H, Lake Powell, UT, October 20, 2005 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: October 20, 2005, 16:30 local (22:30 UTC) - Place: Lake Powell, UT - Coordinates: 37.559165, -110.757774 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.5592&lon=-110.7578&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report February 28, 2006 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 62724 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=SEA06CA009 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/62724/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA06CA009 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from terrain during an aborted water takeoff run which resulted in the airplane colliding with a canyon wall. A contributing factor was the submerged object that the airplane struck during the takeoff run. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - On ground/water collision with object, takeoff - roll/run - terrain condition - water - object - submerged object (contributing factor) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, takeoff - aborted - clearance - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - terrain condition - cliff ## Analysis According to the pilot, he was making a water takeoff from a finger of a lake that extended into a narrow canyon. During the takeoff run, he was almost on the step when the right float struck a submerged object. He aborted the takeoff by reducing power. The airplane drifted to the right, and the right wingtip contacted the canyon wall. The airplane pivoted to the right, the right float contacted the canyon wall, and the airplane came to a stop. The right wing sustained structural damage. ## Factual narrative On October 20, 2005, about 1630 mountain daylight time, a Cessna A185F amphibian airplane, N7377H, sustained substantial damage when it impacted a canyon wall during an aborted water takeoff from the surface of Lake Powell, Utah. The private pilot, the sole occupant and registered owner and operator of the airplane, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the local personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. The flight was originating when the accident occurred. According to the pilot, he was making a water takeoff from a finger of the lake that extended into a narrow canyon. During the takeoff run, he was almost on the step when the right float struck a submerged object. He aborted the takeoff by reducing power. The airplane drifted to the right, and the right wingtip contacted the canyon wall. The airplane pivoted to the right, the right float contacted the canyon wall, and the airplane came to a stop. The right wing sustained structural damage. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N7377H](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N7377H), registered now, S/N 18503382, built 1977 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna A185F - Registry model: [Cessna A185F](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-a185f) (registry code 2072821) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental IO-520 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (registry code 17032, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18503382 - Engines: Continental IO-520-D reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Private Individual - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: Lake Powell, UT ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 62; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land, single-engine sea, multi-engine land; medical: class 3; flight hours: 2,200 total, 176 in this make and model, 57 in the last 90 days, 19 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day ## 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 20051020023789A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20051020023789A), Oct 20, 2005: Cessna A185F, Halls Crossing, UT, Substantial damage. (-23) The pilot was operating in an area that contained logs and other debris that drift into the canyon waterways without current. The lake is about 30 feet… ## Other investigations on N7377H (1) 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. - [NTSB MKC80FCD12](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MKC80FCD12), Feb 7, 1980: Cessna 185 (N7377H), Creston, IA, substantial damage 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.