Piper PA-12-150 accident near Healy, AK
On September 23, 2018, a Piper PA-12-150 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Healy, AK. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- September 23, 2018
- Place
- Healy, AK
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-12-150 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 63.900°N, 147.733°W
- NTSB ID
- 20180924X42217
Official records · ANC18FA071
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn September 22, 2018, the wreckage of a tailwheel-equipped Piper PA-12 airplane, N7511H, was located in remote mountainous terrain about 35 miles east of Healy, Alaska. The private pilot and the passenger were fatally injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged by impact forces and a postcrash fire. The airplane was registered to the pilot who was operating it as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The flight departed from Fairbanks International Airport (FAI), Fairbanks, Alaska, on September 15, 2018, and no flight plan had been filed. The purpose of the flight was to fly to the Alaska Range, which is a mountain range located about 50 miles south of Fairbanks, where the pilot and his passenger would hunt sheep. No communications from the pilot, such as from a satellite phone or a satellite communication device, were received by the family after the pilot's departure from FAI. After the pilot did not report to his place of employment on September 19, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) alert notice "ALNOT" was issued at 1620 Alaska daylight time, and an extensive search and rescue (SAR) operation began the next day. The operation consisted of aerial SAR assets from multiple agencies, including the Alaska Air National Guard, the Alaska Army National Guard, the Civil Air Patrol, and the Alaska State Troopers, as well as several individual volunteers. The accident airplane was located by a volunteer, and an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter responded to the accident site and the aircrew found both occupants deceased
Probable cause
An impact with terrain for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information.
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Browse: Alaska · Piper 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.
