Piper J-5 N31164

Summary

On 29 May 1997 at about 05:45 local time, a Piper J-5 registered N31164 was involved in an accident near Wasilla, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 May 1997 at 05:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Wasilla, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Piper J-5

Registration

N31164

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC97LA079

Nobody was injured.

The loss of engine power for an undetermined reason, and the noncertificated pilot's decision to perform a go-around after a suitable landing site had been attained. A factor associated with the accident was the rough and uneven terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported a loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing in a gravel pit. He said he did not know why the engine quit, but said one of the fuel tanks still had fuel. Prior to landing in the gravel pit, the pilot said he made an emergency approach to an airstrip, and was just about to land on the runway, when the engine started again. He said he should have landed anyway, but elected to go around and fly to his own airstrip. Soon after he left the airstrip, the engine quit, and he landed in the gravel pit. A state trooper who interviewed the pilot reported the pilot told him he had just changed two cylinders on the airplane's engine, and was on a test flight. The noncertificated pilot is not an aviation mechanic, and in his report he did not indicate he had any flight experience, or that the airplane had received any of the required inspections. He did relate that he routinely flies the airplane from his private, rural airstrip.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.