14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, October 29, 2011 in Vienna, OH
Probable Cause Approval Date: 06/12/2013
Aircraft: BROCHETTI LOUIS PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER, registration: N486LB
Injuries: 1 Serious.
NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The experimental amateur-built airplane impacted trees and terrain after a loss of engine power during takeoff. The pilot reported that the initial takeoff roll was normal and described the subsequent loss of power during the climb as gradual and continuing. Although postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that one of the engine's spark plug wire terminals was not attached to its respective spark plug, the pilot’s description of a gradual power loss during the climb was not consistent with a spark plug wire detachment, which would have resulted in a rapid loss of power. According to a Federal Aviation Administration carburetor icing chart, the temperature and dew point at the time of the accident were conducive to carburetor icing. The pilot attributed the loss of engine power to carburetor ice. Based on the available evidence, it is likely that the spark plug wire became dislodged from the spark plug during the impact sequence, and the loss of engine power was a result of carburetor icing.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The loss of engine power during climb after takeoff due to carburetor icing.
On October 29, 2011, about 1646 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Brochetti Pietenpol Aircamper, N486LB, impacted trees and terrain following a loss of engine power on takeoff. The airplane was departing from the Smith-Stewart Field Airport (79OH), Vienna, Ohio. The pilot received serious injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage to it's wings and fuselage. The aircraft was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not on a flight plan. The flight was originating at the time of the accident and the intended destination was the Warren Airport (62D), Warren, Ohio.
The pilot reported that the airplane had not been flown in the previous three to four weeks and that it had rained on the morning of the accident flight. He stated that he performed a preflight inspection of the airplane and found no anomalies. During the preflight inspection fuel was drained from each of the fuel tanks but was not collected for visual inspection. The pilot stated that the engine start and taxi were normal. He reported that the airplane lifted off during takeoff as expected but then would not climb as expected. The airplane subsequently impacted trees at the end of the runway.
At 1651, the recorded temperature and dew point at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport, about 4 miles north of the accident site, were 5 degrees Celsius, and 0 degrees Celsius, respectively. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) CE-09-35, the temperature and dew point were in the range for serious carburetor icing potential.
In his report, the pilot surmised that carburetor icing or contaminated fuel may have contributed to the loss of engine power.
Postaccident examination of the airplane by FAA inspectors revealed that one of the engine's spark plug wire terminals was not attached to its respective spark plug. No other evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation were found.
NTSB Identification: CEN12LA049
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, October 29, 2011 in Vienna, OH
Aircraft: BROCHETTI LOUIS PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER, registration: N486LB
Injuries: 1 Serious.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On October 29, 2011, about 1646 eastern daylight time, an Experimental amateur-built Brochetti Pietenpol Aircamper, N486LB, impacted trees and terrain while returning to land following a loss of engine power. The airplane had just taken off from Smith-Stewart Field Airport (79OH), Vienna, Ohio. The pilot received serious injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage to it's wings and fuselage. The aircraft was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not on a flight plan. The local flight was originating at the time of the accident.
This 1990 Pietenpol Air Camper, N486LB, experimental plane crashed about 5 p.m. Saturday in Vienna. The pilot, Ronald Katchpole, 54, of King Graves Road, remains in intensive care at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown.
Photo by Adam Ferrise
VIENNA — The pilot of a small aircraft that crashed at the end of the Price Field runway off of Pleasant Valley Road remained in intensive care at St. Elizabeth Health Center today.
Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration sent investigators from the Cleveland area to the crash scene Saturday to begin an investigation.
Ronald Catchpole, 54, of King Graves Road, suffered serious injuries in the 5 p.m. crash in his 1990 Pietenpol Aircamper recreational aircraft. He was conscious, however, when he was removed from the wreckage.
For the complete story, read Tuesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com
VIENNA - Jeff Jardine watched his friend taxi down the runway at the Price Field airstrip and saw the plane struggle to gain altitude.
Bob Bennett, doing yard work around 5 p.m. Saturday, heard a loud crash.
Both men rushed to the scene of a small plane crash and pulled the pilot out from under the plane that splintered in a small creek about 150 feet down a ravine.
Both men dreaded what they might find at the bottom of the ravine that runs into the backyard of 2260 Pleasant Valley Road. The wreckage looked bad and the pilot was bleeding from the head, chest and stomach but was conscious.
"Catastrophic would be a good word for it," Jardine, of 3844 Smith Stewart Road and a fellow pilot, said. "We were scared to death. I've heard about these things happening and you never know what you're going to find when you get there."
The duo helped fellow Vienna resident Ronald Katchpole, 54, of King Graves Road, until emergency medical personnel arrived.
Catchpole, who was flying a kit-made 1990 Pitenpole Aircamper experimental plane, was taken to St. Elizabeth Health Center, where he was listed in critical but stable condition Saturday night, said Ohio State Highway Patrol Southington Post commander Lt. Brian Holt said.
"He was conscious and talking," said Bennett, an ophthalmologist. "He remained conscious but had trouble remembering things, like how he got there in the creek. He kept saying 'This has got to be a nightmare.'
"He likely had a concussion," Bennett said. "He had a laceration on his scalp and didn't remember anything. I think he may have fractured a rib or spine because he was having trouble breathing lying down, so we propped him up."
Trumbull County HazMat crews quickly contained 13 gallons of spilled airplane fuel that leaked into the creek. Vienna Fire Department finished cleaning the fuel and Vienna police assisted.
Holt said the plane was homemade and built with a kit, and that it was a bona fide and registered aircraft. The Federal Aviation Administration was called in to investigate the cause of the crash.
Jardine, who flies an experimental plane similar to Katchpole's, said he believes engine troubles caused the crash and that Katchpole followed pilot training instructions when the engine did fail. Katchpole is an experienced flyer who owns multiple planes, both at the Price Field airstrip, in southwest Vienna, east of Upper Girard Lake, and at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport in northern Vienna, Jardine said. Those types of planes tend to be safe, he said.
"He's been flying it for a couple years," Jardine said. "It's a casual fun-flying airplane. It's a low and slow plane for recreation."
Jardine said he saw Katchpole taxi out of Runway 18, which means he was flying south. He stayed idle for about five minutes and radioed the tower at the regional airport. Jardine said the plane rolled about 750 to 700 feet before it broke ground.
"He tried to gain altitude but it would only climb to about 10 feet," Jardine said. "The plane oscillated and got just over the trees before it crashed into the trees. I ran into the garage and jumped into my car."
Jardine saw Bennett and asked him if he saw the plane. Bennett said he heard it and the two ran down a hill to the bottom of the ravine where the plane lay, only yards away from where the air strip ended.
Bennett said he believed the man suffered a concussion and may have suffered other internal injuries.
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