Piper PA-18 N5769D

Summary

On 29 April 2012 at about 21:30 local time, a Piper PA-18 registered N5769D was involved in an accident near Pilot Mountain, North Carolina, 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

29 April 2012 at 21:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Pilot Mountain, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Private Airstrip (NONE)

Coordinates

36.4078, -80.5219

Aircraft

Piper PA-18

Registration

N5769D

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pilot Mountain → Pilot Mountain

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA12LA309

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to abort the takeoff in a timely manner. Contributing to the accident was the airplane’s reduced takeoff performance.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The retired airline pilot attempted to take off in his classic single-engine airplane from a dry, 1,900-foot-long turf airstrip. After liftoff, the pilot thought that the airplane would not clear transmission wires beyond the departure end of the runway. The pilot attempted to fly under the lowest wire, about 20 feet above the ground, but one wing caught the wire, and the airplane impacted the ground. No preexisting mechanical anomalies were noted with the airplane, and leading edge damage to both propeller blades indicated that the engine was producing power at impact. Although there was a discrepancy between the accident time as noted by the pilot and the approximate time noted by local authorities, there was a quartering tailwind at both times, ranging in velocity from 3 to 6 knots. In addition, temperatures and dew points from both times indicated a probability of carburetor ice formation during the pilot's reported 4 to 5 minutes of low-power taxi prior to takeoff. The extent to which a tailwind, carburetor ice, or some other phenomena might have singularly or cumulatively affected takeoff and climb performance could not be determined. However, it is likely that diminished performance existed throughout the airplane's takeoff roll, which should have allowed the pilot ample time to recognize it and to safely abort the takeoff in a timely manner.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.