Piper J3C-65 N3609K

Summary

On 11 August 2023 at about 00:00 local time, a Piper J3C-65 registered N3609K, operated by Balsam Shane C, was involved in an accident near Miles City, Montana, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

11 August 2023 at 00:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Miles City, Montana, United States

Coordinates

46.0790, -105.3406

Aircraft

Piper J3C-65

Registration

N3609K

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Balsam Shane C

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR23LA311

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane while landing on unimproved terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was relocating the airplane to a hangar on his ranch. The pilot reported that the airplane did not climb as he expected after takeoff with a headwind to the west. About 100 ft above ground level (agl), the pilot initiated a left turn to the east to perform a precautionary landing to unimproved terrain. Subsequently, the airplane impacted terrain resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.