Piper PA-18-150 N9858P

Summary

On 14 November 2022 at about 16:34 local time, a Piper PA-18-150 registered N9858P, operated by SMG Drones LLC, was involved in an accident near St. Augustine, Florida, 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

14 November 2022 at 16:34

Classification

Accident

Location

St. Augustine, Florida, United States

Coordinates

29.8634, -81.2670

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-150

Registration

N9858P

Category

Airplane

Year built

1976

Engines

1

Operator

SMG Drones LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Daytona Beach → Saint Augustine

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA23LA066

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to appropriately use carburetor heat, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to carburetor icing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The aerial observation pilot was mapping costal erosion; about 2 hours and 20 minutes into the flight, the engine “sputtered” three times over the course of 30 to 60 seconds before completely losing power. The pilot then began troubleshooting the loss of engine power while searching for a forced landing location. The pilot landed the airplane on a relatively sparsely populated area of the beach below. During the landing, the main landing gear dug into the sand and the airplane nosed over, resulting in substantial damage to the engine mounts, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. Postaccident examination of the airplane’s engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures. The temperature and dewpoint conditions about the time of the accident were conducive to the formation of “serious icing at glide [idle] power.” Given the lack of any mechanical anomalies observed during the postaccident examination of the engine, it is likely that the loss of engine power was due to carburetor icing. Additionally, the pilot reported that he did not begin troubleshooting the engine anomalies until after the total power loss had occurred. Had the pilot used carburetor heat to prevent the formation of carburetor ice, or applied it immediately after the engine roughness began, the loss of engine power may have been avoided.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.