What happened
On August 31, 2025, at approximately 17:20 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA28-200R, registration N1147X, crashed near Alta, Utah. The flight was being operated under 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight. The accident resulted in 1 fatal and 1 serious injury.
After departing from Bolinder Field/Tooele Valley Airport (TVY), the aircraft performed a climbing right turn to the northeast. Following clearance from Salt Lake Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON), the aircraft followed the Salt Lake City I-80 VFR Transition route toward Salt Lake International Airport, then turned south at an altitude of approximately 6,600 feet. By 17:11, the aircraft was on a southbound track near South Jordan, Utah, where it began a climbing left turn toward the entrance of Little Cottonwood Canyon.
ADS-B data showed the aircraft was climbing at roughly 380 feet per minute, reaching 8,400 feet by the canyon entrance. Witnesses at a lodge located at 8,600 feet observed the airplane flying up the canyon at a very low altitude, estimated between 100 and 200 feet above the lodge. A second witness, located at an elevation of 9,100 feet, observed the aircraft traveling at a level altitude with rocking wings. This witness reported that the aircraft began a gradual left turn that became an aggressive turn, causing the nose to drop and the aircraft to collide with trees on the north face of the valley.
The investigation
The aircraft impacted terrain in a bowl-shaped area at the end of the canyon. The initial impact occurred on the trunk of a 4-foot wide pine tree at an elevation of approximately 9,060 feet. Marks on the tree bark appeared to match the shape of the three propeller blades.
Fragments of the right outboard wing and aileron were found at the base of the tree. The debris field extended uphill, where the inboard wing, integral fuel tank, and right flap were located. The fuel tank was breached, showing damage to the main spar consistent with the tree trunk impact. The main wreckage, including the cabin, instrument panel, empennage, and left wing, remained relatively intact. The engine detached from the airframe and was located approximately 30 feet uphill from the main wreckage.