Piper PA-22 accident near Kalispell, Montana, March 24, 1998
On March 24, 1998 at about 4:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-22, registered N1770A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kalispell, Montana (Glacier Park Intl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate crosswind correction during landing. A factor was a crosswind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 24, 1998 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Kalispell, Montana · Glacier Park Intl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-22 · all PA-22s on the register
- Registration
- N1770A · no longer on the register · serial 22-503
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was landing with a left crosswind. He reported that while landing the airplane, which had been modified with a tailwheel installation and a short-takeoff-and-landing (STOL) modification, he did not keep full left aileron in. He stated that when he relaxed wheel input, the wind picked up his left wing, at which point the right main landing gear folded and the right wing struck the ground.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 390 hours in all; 12 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 369 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,777 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 25, 1997; 96 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FCA at 4:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 20, 8,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:56 pm from FCA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.