NTSB Factual Report

On June 22, 2007, approximately 2315 mountain daylight time, a Mooney M20C, N6713N, impacted high tension electrical power lines about 7,000 feet (1.3 miles) north of Carbon County Regional Airport, Price, Utah. The private pilot and his passenger were killed, and the airplane, which was owned and operated by the pilot, was substantially damaged by the impact and the post-crash fire. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal cross-country flight, which departed the same airport about one hour earlier, was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan had been filed. There was no report of an ELT activation.

According to witnesses, the pilot landed at the Carbon County Airport about three hours prior to the accident. After landing, he talked to some other pilots, and mentioned that he had landed to take a break, use the restroom, and to refuel the aircraft before heading to his final destination of Green River, Utah. He was on the ground for about two hours, and reportedly he ultimately decided to continue on to Green River, which was about 60 miles southeast, without refueling. Prior to his departure, he mentioned to another pilot that he did not want to wait for the fuel attendant to come out to the airport, and that he had more than enough fuel to make it to Green River. The witnesses said that the pilot departed for Green river after dark (about 2215). About one hour later, the pilot returned to Carbon County Regional Airport, and while on an extended final to runway 18, the airplane hit the unmarked electrical wires, which are strung between unlighted poles.

The investigation determined that there was no requirement for the electrical wires to be marked, nor was there a requirement for the power poles to be lighted. It was also noted that although runway 36 at Price had a Visual Approach Slope Indicator (VASI), runway 18 did not have such a device.

It was also determined that the pilot-activated runway lights at Green River Municipal Airport were not functioning at the time the accident aircraft would have arrived there. According to the Green River airport manager, the lights had not been functioning for about two days, but he had not been made aware of it. After a pilot advised him of the problem, the airport manger reset a tripped circuit breaker, and the system returned to normal operation.

A post-accident inspection of the airplane did not reveal any anomalies in its airframe, engine, or flight control system.

An autopsy performed by the office of the Utah State Medical Examiner determined that the manner of death was accidental, and the cause of death was due to conflagration injuries.

The FAA's Civil Aerospace Medical Institute performed a forensic toxicology examination of specimens taken from the pilot, and the examination was negative for all tested substances.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from power transmission lines while on a night straight-in visual flight rules approach. Factors include a power transmission line about one and three-tenths mile off the approach end of the runway, and the pilot's decision to operate in the night environment.