N720PC

On August 28, 1994, at 1045 eastern daylight time, N720PC, a Piper PA-18, operated by James Bond of Barre, Vermont, collided with power lines during landing on runway 23 at Montpelier Airport, Montpelier, Vermont. The pilot received minor injuries while the airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan was not filed. The local, personal flight was operated under 14 CFR 91.

According to the pilot, he was returning from a local flight and he entered the traffic pattern for a landing on runway 23. He reported that on base leg, " I cut power back to 800-900 rpm's across from the numbers and turned airplane to glide at 70mph. Turned base a quarter mile beyond numbers and then final. With a quarter headwind from left I applied power only to find there was no power available. I tried 2-3 times....checked mixture, carburetor heat, fuel gages and switches."

The pilot stated that he pushed the nose forward to build up the airspeed and that during the landing the airplane's landing gear struck power lines about a quarter mile from the airport and the airplane fell to the ground. The pilot reported that he used carburetor heat when he was flying around earlier. He stated that there was no mechanical malfunction and, "I hoped to flare above power lines and hoped for a soft landing in rough, rolling grass."

The temperature and dew point were 71 and 59 degrees F respectively. According to carburetor icing charts (see attachments), conditions were conducive to carburetor ice.