Piper PA-18-180 N6774B

Summary

On 2 January 2011 at about 20:15 local time, a Piper PA-18-180 registered N6774B, operated by United States Department Agriculture, was involved in an accident near Shoshoni, Wyoming, United States. 2 people were 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

2 January 2011 at 20:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Shoshoni, Wyoming, United States

Coordinates

43.1592, -107.9378

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-180

Registration

N6774B

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

United States Department Agriculture

Operating rule

Public Use

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Riverton → Riverton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR11TA087

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, during a wildlife aerial observation flight, the engine suddenly stopped producing power. The pilot checked the fuel selector and magnetos and applied carburetor heat. Because he was unable to get the engine started again, he executed a forced landing on rough/uneven terrain. During the landing roll, the airplane went off a low bank, contacted the terrain at the bottom of the bank, and sustained substantial damage. At the time of the accident, the airplane had about one hour of fuel remaining, and the postaccident inspection, which included a successful engine run, did not find any anomalies that would have contributed to a loss of power. The ambient temperature and dew point were outside of the range at which carburetor icing would be expected to occur.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.