Pilatus PC-12/45 accident near Butte, MT
On March 22, 2009, a Pilatus PC-12/45 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Butte, MT. 14 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- March 22, 2009
- Place
- Butte, MT
- Aircraft
- Pilatus PC-12/45 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 14 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 45.950°N, 112.483°W
- NTSB ID
- 20090322X90442
Official records · WPR09MA159
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
- Investigation page: status, final report and safety recommendations
Air traffic control records
- ATC 3-Factual Report Of Group Chairman: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC 3-Attachment 1-ATC Transcripts: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC 3-Attachment 2-Controller Statements: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC 3-Attachment 3 -ATC Facility Record Of Daily Operation: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
- ATC 3-Attachment 4-Flight Progress Strips: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
The Safety Board's full report is available at http://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/reports_aviation.html. The Aircraft Accident Report number is NTSB/AAR-11-05. On March 22, 2009, about 1432 mountain daylight time, a Pilatus PC-12/45, N128CM, was diverting to Bert Mooney Airport (BTM), Butte, Montana, when it crashed about 2,100 feet west of runway 33 at BTM. The pilot and the 13 airplane passengers were fatally injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged by impact forces and a postcrash fire. The airplane was owned by Eagle Cap Leasing of Enterprise, Oregon, and was operating as a personal flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The flight departed Oroville Municipal Airport, Oroville, California, on an instrument flight rules flight plan with a destination of Gallatin Field, Bozeman, Montana. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.
Probable cause
(1) the pilot's failure to ensure that a fuel system icing inhibitor was added to the fuel before the flights on the day of the accident; (2) his failure to take appropriate remedial actions after a low fuel pressure state (resulting from icing within the fuel system) and a lateral fuel imbalance developed, including diverting to a suitable airport before the fuel imbalance became extreme; and (3)
More accidents in MT
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Browse: Montana · Pilatus aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
