Piper PA-18-150 N744

Summary

On 30 January 2006 at about 15:20 local time, a Piper PA-18-150 registered N744 was involved in an accident near Gail, Texas, 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

30 January 2006 at 15:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Gail, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Avenger Field Airport (SWW)

Coordinates

32.9139, -101.4956

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-150

Registration

N744

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sweetwater → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DFW06CA063

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed resulting in an inadvertent stall/mush.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The single-engine tailwheel-equipped airplane was performing a predator control flight while on a public use mission for a government agency. The 5,843-hour commercial pilot reported that the flight profile of the flight required operation at low altitude. The pilot reported that about an hour and fifty minutes into the flight, the airplane settled into a mesquite tree thicket while maneuvering. The pilot was able to add full power, arrest the descent, and eventually fly out of the thicket. The pilot found an open pasture about 1/2 mile from the location of the mishap, and landed to survey the damage to the airplane. The pilot found structural damage had occurred to the tail section of the airplane.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.