Piper PA-18-150 N8576Y

Summary

On 11 August 2024 at about 16:34 local time, a Piper PA-18-150 registered N8576Y was involved in an accident near Manhattan, Montana, 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

11 August 2024 at 16:34

Classification

Accident

Location

Manhattan, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

Bozeman Yellowstone Intl (BZN)

Coordinates

45.8238, -111.3471

Aircraft

Piper PA-18-150

Registration

N8576Y

Category

Airplane

Year built

1976

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR24LA271

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power due to carburetor icing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The instructor pilot was giving dual instruction to a pilot-rated student. He reported that soon after departure, the airplane engine RPM reduced to idle. The pilot verified the throttle was at full power, adequate fuel was in both tanks and subsequently applied carburetor heat, which restored the engine to full power. After 10 seconds the RPM began surging and the pilot then turned the carburetor heat off. He turned the carburetor heat on again and pumped the throttle repeatedly while the power continued to surge until the engine quit and he lost all power. They were unable to restart the engine and landed the airplane in a nearby agricultural field. The airplane came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer. The engine ran normally on the ground after the airplane was returned to its upright position following the accident. When the temperature and the dewpoint near the time of the accident were plotted on a carburetor icing probability graph, it was revealed that the airplane was likely operating in meteorological conditions conducive to the formation of carburetor icing (for glide power settings). The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.