Exp Acft Assn Wi Chapter 60 MONI N87TW

Summary

On 4 July 2004 at about 00:30 local time, a Exp Acft Assn Wi Chapter 60 MONI registered N87TW was involved in an accident near Rochester, Washington, 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

4 July 2004 at 00:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Rochester, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Skatter Creek Airport (20WA)

Coordinates

46.8247, -123.0358

Aircraft

Exp Acft Assn Wi Chapter 60 MONI

Registration

N87TW

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Olympia → Chehalis

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA04LA121

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate in-flight decision by failing to refuel, resulting in fuel exhaustion and the loss of power during descent. Factors contributing to the accident included the pilot's lack of experience in the aircraft and the tree.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight was for familiarization purposes. The pilot, who had five hours in the airplane, at first said he didn't remember checking the fuel level, but subsequently said he added 3 gallons to the 4 gallon tank prior to departing on the first leg of a two-leg flight. While en route on the second leg of the flight at 3,500 feet agl, the pilot did one engine shutdown and an air start before the engine quit. An attempt to restart the engine failed, necessitating a forced landing to a 1,800 foot long, 100 foot wide grass airstrip. After misjudging his pattern and being 500 feet too high, the pilot used spoilers and a slipping maneuver to lose altitude. At mid field and 40 above ground level, the pilot elected to turn left 45 degrees and land in a hay field, rather than risk impacting a house located at the end of the airstrip. The airplane subsequently impacted a tree with its right wing, hit flat and sideways before coming to rest upright after having continued to rotate clockwise approximately 120 degrees.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.