Taylorcraft F19 N374D

Summary

On 3 July 2002 at about 01:00 local time, a Taylorcraft F19 registered N374D was involved in an accident near Heron, Montana, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 July 2002 at 01:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Heron, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

Blue C Ranch

Coordinates

48.0586, -115.9569

Aircraft

Taylorcraft F19

Registration

N374D

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sandpoint → Heron

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA02LA128

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's failure to maintain vertical clearance from trees. Factors include tall trees just off the approach end of the runway.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot, who was landing at his 1,400 foot private grass airstrip on a clear day with calm winds, made his "normal approach" to runway 34. As soon as he thought he had cleared the trees off the southeast end of the airstrip, he closed the throttle and pushed the nose of the aircraft down in order to maintain the desired airspeed to the end of the runway. But, when he pushed the nose down, the left wing tip collided with a tree that he had not yet cleared, and the aircraft flipped upside down while about 50 feet above the ground and then impacted the terrain. According to the pilot, there was no indication of any problem with the aircraft's flight controls or engine. He further stated that the only reason for the accident was that he failed to make sure he had cleared the trees.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.