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ANC22LA049

2022-06-20 · Palmer, Alaska, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Current FAA registration · N7048K

Make / Model
PIPER PA-20
Year of manufacture
1950 · 72 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-290 SERIES (140 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A966E4

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The loss of engine power due to carburetor icing and the pilot’s failure to utilize carburetor heat.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that he was departing from a remote unimproved landing site. During takeoff, at about 200 feet above ground level, the engine lost all power. The pilot made a forced landing to a gravel sand bar, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage and both wing lift struts. The pilot stated that he believed that the carburetor developed ice as weather conditions were conducive to carburetor icing and he failed to apply carburetor heat. The pilot reported that there were no pre-accident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • — Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Lack of action-Pilot
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Ice/rain protection system-Intake anti-ice, deice-Not used/operated
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Temp/humidity/pressure-Conducive to carburetor icing-Effect on equipment

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2022_ANC22LA049.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (icing). All research papers