History of Flight
On April 25, 2009, at about 1004 mountain daylight time, a Lockheed P2V-7 Neptune, registration N442NA, impacted terrain about one and a half miles north of Stockton, Utah. The aircraft was owned and operated by Neptune Aviation Services and was on a repositioning flight under a Resource Order from the National Interagency Coordination Center. The flight departed Missoula, Montana, about two hours earlier, en route to Alamogordo, New Mexico. At the time of the accident, the area had low ceilings and restricted visibility. No FAA flight plan was filed, though a company flight plan was on file with NICC.
The flight crew consisted of a captain aged 66 and a first officer aged 60, both holding Airline Transport Pilot certificates and second-class medical certificates. They had accumulated 7,335 and 15,075 total flight hours, respectively, with 916 and 350 hours in the P2V. A passenger was also on board. All three occupants were killed in the accident.
Weather Conditions
At the time of the accident, a low-pressure system was over southwestern Utah with a stationary front across northern Utah. The nearest weather station, Bolinder Field–Tooele Valley Airport (KTVY), about 7.5 miles north of the accident site, reported at 0955 MDT: wind from 330° at 9 knots, visibility 10 miles in moderate drizzle, ceiling broken at 1,500 feet, overcast at 1,900 feet, temperature and dew point 6°C, altimeter 29.80 inHg. About 50 minutes after the accident, visibility dropped to 4 miles in mist with ceilings as low as 800 feet. Three witnesses near the accident site reported low clouds with ceilings about 200 feet above ground, visibility one-quarter mile or less, rain, and fog. They could not see the accident site at the time.
Flight Path and Communications
After departing Missoula at 0803, the crew climbed to 11,500 feet and flew southeast. At about 0940, descending through 7,600 feet, they advised Salt Lake Center they were descending to remain VFR. The controller acknowledged and later terminated radar service at about 0950, advising the crew to contact Salt Lake Approach after 20 miles. The last known transmission was Tanker 42's acknowledgment. The aircraft continued south over the Great Salt Lake, descending to about 5,800 feet near Grantsville, Utah. At 10:02:40, the aircraft was at 5,670 feet heading 141° at 208 knots. Shortly after, it impacted a grassy northwest-facing 20-degree upslope of a ridge at elevation 5,630 feet.
Aircraft and Wreckage
The Lockheed P2V-7 (serial number 150283) was manufactured in 1962 and had a total airframe time of 3,525.2 hours. It was configured as an air tanker and was equipped with propellers that retained de-icing capability, but the airframe had no de-icing or anti-icing systems. The aircraft had last flown on April 22, 2009, for 1.1 hours; previous discrepancies were corrected. The initial impact point showed five ground scars, with the center scar about 6 feet wide and 9 feet long. The impact track continued upslope for about 465 feet to the main wreckage. A post-crash fire caused thermal damage. The left wing outboard section and both reciprocating engine power sections were found further down a ravine southeast of the main wreckage.
Personnel and Operator
The captain and first officer had recent training including CRM and terrain avoidance. Both had valid medical certificates and recent proficiency checks. The aircraft was under contract with the U.S. Forest Service for firefighting duties and was on a repositioning flight to Alamogordo, New Mexico, for the Four Mile Fire.