Pilot Debrief

MURPHY SR3500 near Bigfork, MT — 2025-09-19

Investigation ongoingWPR25FA289
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Date
2025-09-19
Location
Bigfork, MT, USA
Airport
53U
Aircraft
MURPHY SR3500
Registration
N62ZT
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
Fatal
Fatalities
1

Probable cause

NTSB has not published a probable cause for this accident yet. Preliminary reports describe what happened; the cause is determined later, often 12–24 months after the event.

NTSB narrative

On September 19, 2025, about 1205 mountain daylight time, an experimental amateur built Murphy SR3500, N62ZT, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Bigfork, Montana. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to a witness, the tailwheel equipped airplane departed Kalispell City Airport (S27), Kalispell, Montana, about 1130, for a local flight. About 1200, the airplane approached runway 33 at Ferndale Airfield (53U), Bigfork, Montana. According to multiple witnesses at 53U, the airplane bounced twice during a landing attempt on runway 33. About midfield, the airplane was seen rolling out on its main landing gear, with the tail up, and the engine was heard “throttling up.” Near the departure end of runway 33, the airplane was heard climbing out when the engine was heard making a sudden, loud bang and popping sound, then became quiet. The airplane subsequently impacted trees to the right side of runway 33’s overrun area and a post-crash fire ensued. (See figure 1.) Figure 1. Event sequence at 53U Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane impacted trees at the eastern edge of runway 33’s overrun and came to rest upright, at an elevation of 3,079 ft mean sea level (msl), about 875 ft from the departure end of runway 33. The first identified point of contact (FIPC) was a pine tree that had been topped about 50 ft above ground level (agl), located about 104 ft and on magnetic heading of 177° from the main wreckage. The fuselage was thermally destroyed and oriented on a magnetic heading of 121°, among multiple downed trees. The right wing was located at the base of a tree near the FIPC. The left wing was located to the right of the main wreckage, and the empennage was located about 45 ft beyond, and on a magnetic heading of 050° from the main wreckage. The engine remained attached to the fuselage and was thermally damaged. Outboard segments of both propeller blades were located within the debris path. All major components of the airplane were located throughout the debris path. The wreckage was recovered to a secure location for further examination.

Preliminary NTSB coding

  • Unknown or undetermined · Initial climb
View NTSB preliminary report

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