Piper PA-18-135 N18JP

Summary

On 23 April 2013 at about 14:00 local time, a Piper PA-18-135 registered N18JP, operated by Payne James R, was involved in an accident near Inlet, New York, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

23 April 2013 at 14:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Inlet, New York, United States

Coordinates

43.7400, -74.7383

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-135

Registration

N18JP

Category

Airplane

Year built

1953

Engines

1

Operator

Payne James R

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Inlet → Inlet

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA13LA211

1 person was seriously injured.

A loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined during postaccident examination.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot's preflight inspection of the float-equipped airplane revealed no anomalies, and he subsequently departed for a local flight. Shortly after departure, the engine began to run roughly and produce "surges of power." The pilot turned the airplane back toward the departure lake but then realized that the airplane's airspeed and altitude were insufficient to clear trees on the shore. While attempting to maneuver the airplane between trees, the airplane experienced an aerodynamic stall and came to rest inverted near the lakeshore in about 8 to 12 inches of water. Before the airplane was recovered from the lake, 6 gallons of fuel were drained from the left wing tank. The right wing tank was breached during impact. Postaccident examination revealed no obvious defects of the engine or fuel system except for a mixture of water and fuel found in the carburetor float bowl. It could not be determined whether water was present in the bowl before the partial water submersion or as a result of it. Although atmospheric conditions were favorable to the accumulation of carburetor icing at glide and cruise power, it could not be determined if carburetor ice was present during the takeoff.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.