ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 241391
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| Date: | Saturday 12 September 2020 |
| Time: | 21:52 |
| Type: |  Cessna 172H Skyhawk |
| Owner/operator: | Seeley Lake Flying Club Inc |
| Registration: | N3720R |
| MSN: | 17255520 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1966 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 5712 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-360-A1A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Seeley Lake Airport (23S), Seeley Lake, MT -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Bowman Field Airport, MT (3U3) |
| Seeley Lake Airport, MT (23S) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On September 12, 2020, about 2152 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172H airplane, N3720R, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Seeley Lake, Montana. The pilot and one passenger were fatally injured, and one passenger was seriously injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
The airplane with a noninstrument-rated pilot and two passengers onboard was on a night cross-country flight. A witnesses heard the airplane approach the destination airport from the south and continue past the airport to the north until he could no longer hear it. Local law enforcement personnel began a search for the airplane after witnesses reported hearing a crash, and they located the accident site early the next morning about 3/4 miles north of the airport.
The airplane impacted the top of about 75-ft-tall trees and traveled about 365 ft through the treetops on a heading of about 152° before coming to rest. The distance the airplane traveled through the trees was consistent with controlled flight into terrain, and the heading was consistent with a final approach to the airport’s south runway. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The damage to the propeller was consistent with it rotating under power at impact.
A review of weather near the accident site revealed that many wildfires were occurring in the Pacific Northwest at the accident time. A westerly wind carried the smoke from these fires to the area of the accident site. The accident occurred after sunset and with an inversion over the accident site, which trapped and concentrated smoke between the ground and 1,000 ft above ground level. Visibility likely decreased to instrument flight rules levels due to the smoke, and the limited visibility was compounded by the dark night light condition. The first law enforcement officer at the accident site stated that there was haze, and that the visibility was between 1 to 3 miles. It is likely the airplane encountered instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) during the visual approach to the airport, which resulted in the pilot losing visual contact with the ground.
The IMC weather conditions, the airplane’s path through the trees on runway heading, and the evidence of normal engine operation were all consistent with the noninstrument-rated pilot’s-controlled flight into terrain during a night visual approach.
Probable Cause: The noninstrument-rated pilot’s encounter with instrument meteorological conditions during a night visual approach due to wildfire smoke, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.seeleylake.com/story/2020/09/10/news/two-perish-in-airplane-crash-near-seeley-lake/6459.html
https://missoulian.com/news/local/missoula-sheriffs-office-2-dead-in-seeley-plane-crash/article_ea89405f-57aa-53ff-9c46-a26305c3cb96.html
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/montana/articles/2020-09-13/2-dead-1-hospitalized-after-plane-crash-in-montana
Location
Media:
NTSB is investigating a crash in Seeley Lake, MT involving a Cessna 172 aircraft. The NTSB is not traveling to the scene of the crash at this time.
— NTSB_Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) September 13, 2020
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 13-Sep-2020 20:51 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 13-Sep-2020 21:06 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Location, Nature, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
| 14-Sep-2020 15:13 | RobertMB | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Phase, Source, Narrative] |
| 29-Jun-2021 19:17 | aaronwk | Updated [Time, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 13-Oct-2022 02:04 | Captain Adam | Updated [Time, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative, Accident report] |
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