Storch Aviation Australia SS-MK4 N2898J

Summary

On 29 May 2009 at about 14:55 local time, a Storch Aviation Australia SS-MK4 registered N2898J was involved in an accident near Boulder, Utah, 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

29 May 2009 at 14:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Boulder, Utah, United States

Nearest airport

Boulder Creek Canyon Ranch (PVT)

Coordinates

37.7758, -111.4189

Aircraft

Storch Aviation Australia SS-MK4

Registration

N2898J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Boulder → Boulder

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR09LA269

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from power lines during low altitude maneuvering.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

On the morning of the accident flight, the pilot flew with a passenger in the airplane on a sightseeing trip. The flight included low altitude maneuvers, to include low altitude flights into canyons. Photographs provided by the passenger revealed that the airplane was flown at low altitude through the canyons, and very close to the canyon walls. The pilot then landed and disembarked the passenger. Shortly thereafter, the pilot departed with another passenger onboard in the direction of the accident site. Witnesses observed the airplane flying low within a canyon shortly before a power failure occurred in the local town. Damage to the airplane revealed that the left wing struck the power transmission lines. The witness statements, damage sustained by the wing, and the position of the airplane after the accident, indicated that the pilot most likely turned left into an adjacent canyon from the one he was in and immediately into the path of the power lines.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.