Piper PA-28-140 N5547F

Summary

On 6 March 2007 at about 00:00 local time, a Piper PA-28-140 registered N5547F, operated by Justin J. Hall, was involved in an accident near Crescent Lake, Oregon, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 March 2007 at 00:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Crescent Lake, Oregon, United States

Coordinates

43.5839, -122.1867

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-140

Registration

N5547F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Justin J. Hall

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Eugene → Eugene

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA07LA071

2 people were seriously injured.

The loss of a significant amount of engine power for undetermined reasons. Factors include no suitable place in which to make an emergency landing, and densely forested, mountainous/hilly terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot, who was flying between 800 and 1,000 feet above the trees in mountainous/hilly terrain, decided to add power and start a climb up the valley he was in. Just as he added power, the aircraft's engine rpm dropped from about 2,300 to about 1,800 to 1,900 rpm. At that point, he applied full carburetor heat, moved the mixture to full rich, and checked to make sure the fuel selector was in the correct position. According to both the pilot and his passenger, these remedial actions did not help the situation, and the engine rpm stayed near 1,800 rpm. Because the terrain was rising and the aircraft could not maintain altitude, and because they were already very low, the pilot made the decision to attempt a forced landing in the densely forested snow-covered mountainous terrain. While attempting the landing, the aircraft struck a number of trees, and then impacted the snow-covered ground in an inverted position. A post-accident inspection of the airframe, systems, and engine did not reveal evidence of any pre-impact anomalies or malfunctions that would have precluded the engine from operating at full power.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.