SEA07FA165

The day before the accident, the pilot and passenger had arrived in the airplane at a back country airport and set up camp with the intention of flying in the remote mountainous back country for several days. According to his logbook, this was the second time the pilot had made this type of trip, with the previous trip about 11 months prior. The purpose of the accident flight was to fly to another back country airport about 15 nautical miles to the north, have breakfast at a lodge, and then return. The pilot did not file a flight plan, and although the passenger thought other pilots knew their destination and intended time of return, this was not the case. The passenger stated that other airplanes departed first, and then they took off. She recalled that they were flying inside the canyon walls and made several turns. As they headed up a drainage, the pilot told her it was the "wrong drainage." The stall warning horn came on, and there was "no time or room to turn around." The airplane could not out climb the rising terrain and impacted the ground. The pilot sustained a skull fracture and died about 10 to 12 hours after the crash. The passenger's was injured but ambulatory, and stayed with the airplane to await rescue. A search for the airplane was not started until 2 days after the accident, when the caretaker at the departure airport noted that the couple's camping gear was still at the airport. The wreckage was located by an aerial search airplane 3 days after the accident. The accident site was about 8 nautical miles north of the departure airport, at an elevation of approximately 8,000 feet on the south side of an east-west ridgeline. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of any malfunctions or failures that would have prevented normal operation. No emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal was received from the airplane. The ELT was tested and found to function normally; the reason it did not activate upon impact could not be determined. The passenger reported that she was not aware of the location or function of the ELT, and therefore, she did not attempt to activate it manually. The passenger stated that there was a survival kit in the airplane, which she was aware of and made use of, during the 3 days she spent waiting for rescue.

History of flight

On June 14, 2007, approximately 0830 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172, N6233E, impacted mountainous terrain while maneuvering near Yellow Pine, Idaho. The airplane sustained substantial damage, the private pilot was killed, and the passenger, who was the pilot's wife, received serious injuries. The pilot, who was the registered owner of the airplane, was operating it under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the planned personal cross country flight between two back country airports and no flight plan was filed. The flight departed from Johnson Creek Airport about 0815, and the intended destination was Big Creek Airport, located about 15 nautical miles to the north of Johnson Creek.

During a telephone interview conducted by the NTSB investigator-in-charge, the passenger reported that they had flown to Johnson Creek from their home near Willits, California, the day before the accident and set up camp at Johnson Creek with the intention of flying in the Idaho back country for several days. The purpose of the accident flight was to fly to Big Creek, have breakfast at a lodge there, and then return to Johnson Creek. She stated that the night before they had talked with other pilots around the camp fire at Johnson Creek, and she thought the other pilots knew they were going to fly to Big Creek in the morning.

The passenger stated that other airplanes departed first, and then they took off to go to Big Creek. The passenger recalled that they were flying inside the canyon walls and made several turns. As they headed up a drainage, the pilot told her it was the "wrong drainage." The stall warning horn came on, and there was "no time or room to turn around." The airplane could not out climb the rising terrain and impacted the ground.

The airplane was reported missing on June 16 about 1045 by the caretaker at Johnson Creek. The caretaker reported that the airplane had departed Johnson Creek about 1000 on June 14 for an unknown destination, possibly Thomas Creek, Indian Creek, Sulphur Creek or Moose Creek, and that the couple's camping gear was still at Johnson Creek. A search was initiated, and the wreckage was located by an aerial search airplane about 1540 on June 17. The accident site was located about 8 nautical miles north of Johnson Creek at an elevation of approximately 8,000 feet on the south side of an east-west ridgeline.

Personnel information

The pilot, age 55, held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single-engine land rating. His most recent medical certificate was a third class medical certificate issued on November 9, 2006, with the limitation, must have available glasses for near vision.

Review of the pilot's personal flight logbooks revealed that as of June 13, 2007, he had logged a total of 1,000 hours flight time of which 760 hours were in the same make and model as the accident airplane. The logbooks indicated the pilot had made one previous trip to the Idaho back country in the airplane; a series of entries dated July 23, 2005, to August 7, 2005, listed flights into several Idaho back country airports. An entry dated July 26, 2005, listed a flight of 0.4 hours duration between Johnson Creek Airport and Big Creek Airport.

Aircraft information

The 1959 model Cessna 172, S/N 46333, was powered by a 145-horsepower Continental O-300-A engine, S/N 14273-0-8-A. The most recent annual inspection was completed on July 3, 2006, at an airframe total time of 4,996 hours; as of this date, the engine had accumulated 765 hours since major overhaul.

The airplane was found equipped with an EBC-102A emergency locator transmitter (ELT) manufactured by the Emergency Beacon Corporation of New Rochelle, New York. No entry was found in the airplane's maintenance records documenting installation of the ELT. The maintenance records indicated that during the most recent annual inspection, a new ELT battery was installed (replacement due in July 2008) and the ELT was inspected in accordance with FAR 91.207 (D).

A copy of the installation instructions for the ELT was obtained from the manufacturer. The instructions stated in part, "the EBC-102A must be installed on the left side of the aircraft" and "must be vertical with as much as possible of the antenna visible through a window when viewed from outside the aircraft." The ELT was found mounted to the airplane's left cabin wall aft of the rear doorpost. It was mounted in a vertical position and the antenna was visible through the left rear cabin side window.

An entry in the airframe logbook dated July 10, 1996, stated "installed shoulder harness kit." A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Form 337 dated July 1, 1996, stated "installed Aero Fabricators Shoulder Harness and seat belt assembly per the manufacturers installation instructions AF-28 and STC SA1475GL." An entry in the airframe logbook dated January 13, 2005, stated "installed BAS Shoulder Harness in accordance with STC #SA2067NM." An invoice provided by BAS Incorporated showed that on December 9, 2004, the pilot purchased a standard inertial reel shoulder harness kit for "1 side only." The maintenance records did not specify at what station these shoulder harnesses were installed.

Meteorological information

At 0850, the recorded weather conditions at McCall Municipal Airport, McCall, Idaho, located about 26 nautical miles west of the accident site, were wind from 230 degrees at 3 Knots, sky clear, visibility 10 miles, temperature 12 degrees C, dew point 6 degrees C, and altimeter setting 30.08 inches Hg. The passenger reported that "clear weather" prevailed for the flight.

Wreckage and impact information

Review of photos taken by salvage personnel revealed that the airplane came to rest at the edge of a rocky clearing on a heavily forested slope. The airplane's nose and the leading edges of both wings were embedded in the trees at the edge of the clearing. The tail cone of the airplane, which was partially separated aft of the baggage compartment and bent down, projected into the clearing. The nose landing gear separated from the fuselage and came to rest near the empennage. The right wing leading edge was crushed aft to the front spar from the lift strut attach point to the wingtip. The outboard one third of the left wing was bent down and twisted aft. All control surfaces remained attached to their respective attach points. Both flaps appeared to be in the full down position, and the flap handle appeared to be in the corresponding position.

The wreckage was examined by the NTSB IIC and an airframe manufacturer's representative after it was recovered from the accident site. The examination took place on June 28, 2007, at the facilities of Discount Aircraft Salvage in Deer Park, Washington. The forward lower left corner of the fuselage was crushed upward and rearward. The floor board was folded upward between the left side rudder pedals and the left front (pilot's) seat. The pilot's seat was in the full forward position and was jammed in place and could not be removed. The right front seat was not in place. The right seat tracks were damaged in a manner consistent with the seat having separated from the track during impact.

The left front (pilot's) station was equipped with a shoulder harness with an inertia reel mounted to the forward carry through spar and a seat belt mounted to the cabin floor. The attach points for the inertia reel and the seat belt remained intact. The webbing was cut in three places. When the webbing extending from the inertia reel was given a sharp pull by hand, the reel locked. Comparison of the pilot's station shoulder harness installation to installation instructions provided by BAS Incorporated indicated that the installation appeared to conform to the instructions.

The right front station (passenger's station) was equipped with a shoulder harness with