- Date
- August 31, 2025, 08:45 local (14:45 UTC)
- Place
- Red Lodge, MT
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N45254Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3
- Defining event
- Landing-aborted after touchdown: Collision during takeoff/land
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 11, 2025
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FAA-FSDO
- FAA report
- 20250831014499A
- Case key
- 200922
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 clearance from obstacles during an aborted landing. Contributing to the accident was the high density altitude weather condition.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that, while landing he executed a go around due to numerous people on the grass runway. On the second approach the airplane touched down hard and bounced so the pilot added power and initiated a go-around. During the go-around, the airplane impacted a wire fence at the end of the runway and subsequently struck powerlines before it came to rest. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. The pilot reported that he had previously only flown low approaches at the airport, and he had not landed there before. He also reported there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The nearest weather reporting station, about 27 miles southeast of the accident site, reported around the time of the accident, altimeter setting of 30.31 inches of mercury, and temperature of 68° F. The calculated density altitude was 7,349 ft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N45254
- Reported as
- Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2601
- Built
- 1941
- Airframe hours
- 791.2
- Engine
- Naval Aircraft Factory 760-8, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 28, 2024 · 13 hours before
- Departed
- Priv · Columbus, MT
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- RED · Red Lodge, runway 16/34, 4,000 × 75 ft, grass/turf
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
- 68
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- BasicMed
- Last flight review
- August 8, 2023
- Seat
- Rear
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 4,641 total · 406 in this make and model · 7 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.31 inHg
- Observed at
- KPOY, 27 nm away
- METAR
- KPOY 311455Z AUTO 15003KT 10SM CLR 20/02 A3031 RMK AO2
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 11, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 5.1 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.