Piper PA-18-150 N8048D

Summary

On 15 July 2012 at about 13:00 local time, a Piper PA-18-150 registered N8048D, operated by Barnstormer Flite Signs Inc, was involved in an accident near North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, 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

15 July 2012 at 13:00

Classification

Accident

Location

North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Grand Strand Airport (CRE)

Coordinates

33.8117, -78.7239

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-150

Registration

N8048D

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Barnstormer Flite Signs Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Banner Tow

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

North Myrtle Beach → North Myrtle Beach

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA12LA453

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate use of carburetor heat during cruise flight, which resulted in a partial loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that he was conducting a banner-tow flight; he turned on final approach at 300 feet above ground level (agl) and reduced the power to the idle position. His airspeed was between 60 and 70 mph. The carburetor heat was not activated, which the pilot indicated was company policy. The company refuted the pilot’s statement regarding carburetor heat. The airplane descended to about 10 feet agl and was 50 feet from the banner pick up poles. He added full power and noticed that the rpm was at 2,500, which was 100 rpm less than full power. He pitched the nose up and the airplane climbed to about 200 feet. The rpm continued to decrease to 1500 rpm. The pilot lowered the nose and checked the throttle, and it was full forward. He increased the mixture, and there was no change in rpm. The airplane would not maintain altitude, and he informed the tower that he was going down. He reduced the throttle to the idle position and lowered the flaps to the full down position. He made a forced landing beyond the banner tow grass area, clearing a berm and colliding with the airport perimeter fence. The airplane nosed over and came to a complete stop and the engine stopped running. The pilot turned the fuel off at the fuel selector valve. The pilot stated that he did not experience any mechanical problems with the airframe or flight controls before the accident. A carburetor icing chart indicated that the airplane was at risk of serious icing at glide power given the weather conditions at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.