Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Root Ranch Airstrip Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Big Creek, Idaho 83677
Friday, July 25, 1997 13:10 MDT
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
The flight was being conducted for the purposes of providing mountain flight instruction to the pilot/aircraft owner, who was from California. A highly experienced local mountain/backcountry flight instructor was aboard. The aircraft was observed to approach a north-south oriented private backcountry airstrip, south to north, at slow speed about 100 to 150 feet above the ground. About 1/3 of the way down the 1,900-foot-long airstrip, the pilot/owner, observed sitting in the left seat, dropped a small package out of the left side window. Witnesses then heard the engine power increase. The airplane continued north in level flight, then began a left turn. The aircraft was then seen to strike a line of 60- to 80-foot-tall trees about 1,400 feet north of the departure end while in a left bank. Following the tree strike, the aircraft went into a sharp left turn, went steeply nose down, and impacted the ground. No evidence of aircraft or engine malfunction was found in on-scene or follow-up examinations of the wreckage.
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
The flightcrew's failure to maintain clearance from trees. A factor was trees north of the departure end of the airstrip.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 7/25/1997 |
| Event Day of the Week | Friday |
| Time of Event | 1310 |
| Event Time Zone | Mountain Daylight Time |
| Event City | BIG CREEK |
| Event State | IDAHO |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 83677 |
| Event Date Year | 1997 |
| Event Date Month | 7 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | |
| Event Location Longitude | |
| Event Location Airport | ROOT RANCH AIRSTRIP |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | 1 |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | 340 |
| Airport Elevation | 5650 |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Unknown |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1314 Mountain Daylight Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 86 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | SMN |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 4045 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 51 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | MDT |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 0 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | 0 |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Clear |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | None |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | 0 |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | 0 |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 10 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | 24 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | 11 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 185 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 5 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Not Gusting |
| Wind Gust (knots) | 0 |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 29 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | 6000 |
| Intensity of Precipitation | Unknown |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | Fatal |
| On Ground, Fatal Injuries | 0 |
| On Ground, Minor Injuries | 0 |
| On Ground, Serious Injuries | 0 |
| Injury Total Fatal | 2 |
| Injury Total Minor | -- |
| Injury Total None | -- |
| Injury Total Serious | -- |
| Injury Total All | 2 |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 1415 |
| NTSB Notification Source | -- |
| NTSB Notification Date | Jul 25 1997 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 1329 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | IMAGE |
| Date of most recent change to record | Dec 8 2000 12:26PM |
| User who most recently changed record | dbo |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | -- |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N3134S |
| NTSB Number | SEA97LA177 |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | N |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Part 91: General Aviation |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | None |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | -- |
| Damage | Destroyed |
| Aircraft Fire | Ground |
| Aircraft Explosion | Ground |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | Cessna |
| Aircraft Model | 182G |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | 182G |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 18255634 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 2800 |
| Aircraft Category | Airplane |
| Aircraft Registration Class | U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil |
| Aircraft is a homebuilt? | No |
| Flight Crew Seats | -- |
| Cabin Crew Seats | -- |
| Passenger Seats | -- |
| Total number of seats on the aircraft | 4 |
| Number of Engines | 1 |
| Fixed gear or retractable gear | Fixed |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | May 20 1997 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | 22 |
| Airframe Hours | -- |
| ELT Installed | Yes |
| ELT Activated | Unknown |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | Unknown |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | DAVID M. NENOW |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | 4374 ARCADIA DR. |
| Aircraft Owner City | SAN DIEGO |
| Aircraft Owner State | CA |
| Aircraft Owner Country | |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 92103 |
| Operator is an individual? | -- |
| Operator Name | |
| Operator Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Is Doing Business As | -- |
| Operator Address Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Street Address | |
| Operator City | |
| Operator State | |
| Operator Country | |
| Operator Zip code | |
| Operator Code | |
| Owner has at least one certificate | None |
| Other Operator of large aircraft? | No |
| Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation | Unknown |
| Operator Certificate Number | -- |
| Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not | -- |
| Indicates Domestic or International Flight | -- |
| Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail | -- |
| Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) | Unknown |
| Second Pilot on Board | Yes |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No |
| Departure Airport Code | 79U |
| Departure City | FLYING B RANCH |
| Departure State | ID |
| Departure Country | |
| Departure Time | 0 |
| Departure Time Zone | |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | -- |
| Destination Airport Code | |
| Destination City | UNKNOWN |
| Destination State | |
| Destination Country | |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Maneuvering |
| Report sent to ICAO? | -- |
| Evacuation occurred | -- |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jan 2 2001 10:30AM |
| User who most recently changed record | dbo |
| Since inspection or accident | -- |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | 34 |
| Runway Length | 1900 |
| Runway Width | 50 |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |