Piper PA-18 N7276D

Summary

On 31 March 2012 at about 01:08 local time, a Piper PA-18 registered N7276D, operated by Richard I. Wilmarth, was involved in an accident near Sleetmute, Alaska, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

31 March 2012 at 01:08

Classification

Accident

Location

Sleetmute, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

61.9409, -157.6204

Aircraft

Piper PA-18

Registration

N7276D

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Richard I. Wilmarth

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sleetmute → Red Devil

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC12FA028

2 people died.

Operation of the airplane by a non-certificated pilot and his failure to maintain adequate airspeed and airplane control, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

About 30 minutes after the uncertificated pilot and a passenger departed for a reconnaissance flight, a witness saw the airplane flying "low and slow" over the treetops toward the intended landing site. As the airplane flew toward the landing site threshold, it began a slight right turn, then it nosed down abruptly, and the engine speed increased to a very high rpm setting. The airplane continued the near-vertical, steep descent, and it began a 3/4 spiral turn downward, indicative of an aerodynamic stall, before descending from view into the trees at the approach end of the site. An NTSB on scene wreckage examination of the airplane did not disclose any preimpact mechanical malfunctions. It is likely that the pilot failed to maintain adequate airspeed during the low-altitude approach, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall from which he could not recover even with the addition of engine power.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.