History of Flight
On April 1, 2009, about 1630 mountain daylight time, a Maule M-4-220C, registration N2007U, collided with the frozen surface of a reservoir near Hungry Horse, Montana. The pilot was operating the airplane under Part 91. The certificated private pilot was killed; the airplane was destroyed by impact forces. The personal local flight departed Glacier Park International Airport (KGPI), Kalispell, Montana, at 1602. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the departure airport, and no flight plan had been filed.
Radar data from the FAA revealed a target departing Kalispell at 1602:48 using transponder code 1200. The target climbed northeast to 4,500 feet msl. Three miles northeast, it made a 360-degree left turn before continuing. Over the next two minutes it climbed to 5,100 feet, the last radar return at 1608:36, about 2 miles west of Hungry Horse.
A handheld Garmin GPS III recovered from the airplane provided flight track data matching radar. The airplane flew about 1 mile beyond the last radar return, then changed course southeast. For 11 minutes it followed the western shore of the reservoir, covering about 20 miles, with ground speeds between 121 and 155 mph. It then turned south, speed increasing to 161 mph, then decreasing to 96 mph, then back to 132 mph. It turned southeast again and continued at 123–140 mph for 2.5 minutes, then began a left turn north. The final GPS location recorded 14 seconds later, at about 146 mph on a heading of 10 degrees true.
The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center received a 406 MHz ELT activation at 1629 near Hungry Horse Reservoir. An ALNOT was issued after the pilot could not be reached and family confirmed he had not returned. A joint search by Flathead County Sheriff and Montana State Fish, Wildlife and Parks located the wreckage at 0020 the next morning. The wreckage sat on the frozen reservoir 26 miles southeast of Hungry Horse. Snow and cloud obscuration prevented aerial search; the airplane was covered with fresh snow upon arrival. Earlier, the pilot had told family the flight was a short sightseeing trip.
Personnel Information
The 50-year-old pilot held a private pilot certificate for single-engine land, issued June 19, 2004, with no instrument rating. He held a third-class medical certificate issued February 2008, with a limitation for near vision glasses. His logbook indicated about 609 total flight hours as of March 20, 2009, with about 496 in the accident airplane. He reported 7.1 hours of simulated instrument time. Logbook entries included multiple references to flights in snow and marginal VFR conditions, including Special VFR takeoffs and landings.
Aircraft Information
The four-seat, high-wing, fixed-gear airplane was manufactured in 1967. It was powered by a six-cylinder Franklin PZLF-6A-350C1R engine with a two-blade McCauley constant-speed propeller. Maintenance logbooks were not recovered, but an invoice from Poorman Aviation indicated the last annual inspection on December 18, 2008, at 2,161.6 airframe hours. The engine tachometer at the accident site indicated 2,174.98. The airplane was equipped with attitude, direction, and navigation instruments required for instrument meteorological conditions flight.
Meteorological Information
The closest aviation weather observation station was Kalispell, 28 miles northwest of the accident site (elevation 2,977 ft). A 1555 METAR reported: winds 260° at 12 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear skies, temperature 7°C, dew point -6°C, altimeter 29.79 inHg. A 1655 METAR: winds 250° at 12 knots gusting 20, visibility 10 miles, scattered clouds at 4,000 ft, broken at 6,500 ft, temperature 6°C, dew point -7°C.
Surface observations from Essex, Montana (11 miles north, elevation 3,848 ft) reported moderate snow from 1616 to 1637 MDT, temperatures around 30°F, winds light. AIRMET Sierra Update 4 for mountain obscuration and occasional precipitation was issued at 1445, valid until 2100, covering the accident area. A pilot flying near Kalispell at the time reported descending from 13,500 ft in clouds, breaking out at 6,000 ft, with scattered clouds and intermittent snow showers below. Peaks of the Flathead Mountains east of Kalispell were obscured. Lockheed Martin Flight Services provided no weather-related services to N2007U that day.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was at the center of a 1-mile-wide section of the reservoir, elevation 3,564 ft, flanked by peaks to the east (8,396 ft) and west (7,542 ft). The First Identified Point of Contact (FIPC) was a 10-inch-deep, 14-foot-long swath of excavated snow and ice oriented about 345° magnetic. Outboard left wing skin sections and red navigation light were found 10 feet beyond. A second scar 16 feet east and 14 feet beyond was 20 ft long, 6 ft wide, 18 inches deep, containing engine cowling and oil line hosing. The propeller and vacuum pump were about 100 ft northeast; five intermittent indentations led to the propeller. The debris path continued on a bearing of 330°, with right wing skin and green navigation light 80 ft beyond, then various debris. The main wreckage came to rest 270 ft beyond FIPC, inverted, with crush damage from firewall to rear seat. The tail section was intact, upright, folded over the cabin. The right horizontal stabilizer and elevator folded forward. The engine came to rest inverted on a heading of 230°, still attached by control cables and hoses; oil in snow. Both wings were inverted, partially attached, with leading edge crush damage starting 4 ft inboard of wing tips, emanating at a 45° angle aft. Both wing spars exhibited 15° upward buckling at the wing strut. Fuel tanks were breached; fuel odor present. The instrument panel showed crush damage; airspeed indicator read 128 mph, vertical speed indicator showed a 500 ft/min descent, altimeter set to 29.79 inHg. The magneto switch was in both position; carburetor heat, throttle, fuel mixture, and propeller controls were full forward. All major airplane sections were accounted for.
Medical and Pathological Information
A postmortem examination by the State of Montana Forensic Science Division reported the cause of death as blunt force injuries. Toxicological tests by the FAA Civil Aeromedical Institute were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, all screened drugs, and ingested alcohol.
Tests and Research
The airplane and engine were recovered and examined in Kalispell. No obvious anomalies that would have precluded normal operation were identified. A full examination report is in the public docket.
Additional Information
Fueling records indicated the airplane was serviced with 13 gallons of aviation gasoline on March 20, 2009, 0.4 flight hours prior to the accident. A fuel logbook notation stated tanks were filled to maximum capacity. The Kannad 406 MHz ELT was not configured to provide GPS location, but the AFRCC provided coordinates about 800 feet from the accident site. FAA Advisory Circular 60-4A discusses spatial disorientation and the importance of flight instruments in low visibility.