14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, September 23, 2012 in Lompoc, CA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 04/10/2014
Aircraft: NAVION NAVION, registration: N4418K
Injuries: 1 Uninjured.
NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
After the airplane took off and turned downwind, the engine began to lose power. The pilot activated the boost pump, but this was followed by a total loss of engine power. The pilot then elected to return to the departure runway, but after he realized that he had insufficient altitude to reach the runway, he chose to land in an open field. Following touchdown, the airplane sustained substantial damage to the aft fuselage after sliding about 80 feet before coming to rest upright. A postaccident examination of the carburetor, boost pump, and relief valve revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Although the airplane was operating in a regime where it may be susceptible to serious carburetor icing at cruise power, the engine was operating at higher power setting, and there was no evidence that carburetor icing played a role in the accident. The reason for the loss of engine could not be determined.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
A total loss of engine power after takeoff for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
On September 23, 2012, about 0935 Pacific daylight time, a Navion-A airplane, N4418K, sustained substantial damage following a forced landing due to a loss of engine power shortly after takeoff from the Lompoc Airport (LPC), Lompoc, California. The certified commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and a flight plan was not filed. The personal cross-country flight was being operated in accordance with 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The reported destination was the Lodi Airport (1O3), Lodi, California.
In a statement submitted to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, the pilot reported that after taking off and while entering a left downwind leg at 1,200 feet, the engine began to lose power; after turning the boost pump on there was a total loss of power. The pilot stated that he then turned back toward the departure runway, turned the hydraulic power on and lowered the landing gear; the landing gear was retracted when the pilot realized he was too far from the runway to make a safe landing. The pilot opined that he maneuvered over power lines, turned about 30 degrees to the right and flew through the lowest gap in the approaching trees. The airplane landed in a soft dirt field and slid about 80 feet before coming to rest in an upright position. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the aft fuselage.
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) aviation safety inspector reported that during his initial inspection of the engine the fuel pressure measured at the carburetor was 5 pounds per square inch (psi). The inspector further reported that after testing the fuel pressure several times the pressure increased to 10 psi, and that during a bench test of the relief valve, pressure at the relief valve was confirmed to be 10.5 psi; the engine requires a minimum pressure of 9 to 15 psi under normal conditions.
Under the supervision of a FAA aviation safety inspector, the carburetor and boost pump were examined at the facilities of KPS Airmotive, Santa Clarita, California. The results of the examination revealed no anomalies with either component that would have precluded normal operation. (Refer to the KPS Airmotive report, which is appended to this report.)
Maintenance records revealed that both magnetos and the airplane's boost pump were overhauled on June 21, 2012.
At 0935, the LPC weather reporting facility, located about 3 nautical miles north of the accident site, reported wind 260 degree at 3 knots, visibility 10 miles, scattered clouds at 400 feet, temperature 15 degrees Celsius (C), dew point 11 degrees C, and an altimeter setting of 29.99 inches of mercury.
The reason for the reported total loss of engine power was undetermined.
http://registry.faa.gov/N4418K
NTSB Identification: WPR12LA434
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, September 23, 2012 in Lompoc, CA
Aircraft: NAVION NAVION, registration: N4418K
Injuries: 1 Uninjured.
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 September 23, 2012, about 0935 Pacific daylight time, a Navion-A airplane, N4418K, sustained substantial damage following a forced landing due to a loss of engine power near the Lompoc Airport (LPC), Lompoc, California. The certified commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and a flight plan was not filed. The personal cross-country flight was being operated in accordance with 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The reported destination was the Lodi Airport (103), Lodi, California.
In a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, the pilot reported that he had just taken off and was on a downwind departure when the engine lost power and quit. The pilot stated that he then set up for a landing to an off-airport field, shut the fuel off, and raised the landing gear prior to landing . The airplane came to rest in an upright position, with substantial damage to the aft fuselage.
The airplane was recovered to a secured facility for further examination.
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 4418K Make/Model: NAVI Description: NA-4 NAVION
Date: 09/23/2012 Time: 1645
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: None Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Substantial
LOCATION
City: LOMPOC State: CA Country: US
DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT FORCE LANDED IN A FIELD, NEAR LOMPOC, CA
INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 1 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Landing Operation: OTHER
FAA FSDO: VAN NUYS, CA (WP01) Entry date: 09/24/2012
Contributed
A single-engine plane made an emergency landing Sunday morning near the Lompoc Airport. The pilot was not injured.
A private plane made an emergency landing short of the Lompoc Airport about 10 a.m. Sunday, but the pilot wasn’t injured.
Lompoc Fire Department responded and found a single-engine aircraft that had made an emergency landing in a field just east of Highway 1, directly across from the Lompoc Airport, Battalion Chief Mark Clayton said.
The pilot, Dylan Abbott, was uninjured and was the only person aboard the plane at the time, according to Clayton.
“He was very fortunate,” Clayton said.
No fire or fuel spill resulted from the incident, according to Clayton.
Authorities reported the incident to the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.
According to the FAA’s online records, the four-seat Navion A aircraft was manufactured in 1948 and is registered to a Gilroy man.
http://santamariatimes.com
http://www.ksby.com
The Lompoc Fire Department and Lompoc Police Department responded to a report of a plane that had gone down near the city's airport on Sunday morning.
They say a single-engine plane made an emergency landing around 10 a.m. in a field across from the airport, and east of Highway 1.
Officials say the pilot was flying alone and was not injured.
There were no reports of injuries to anyone on the ground, and the plane did not catch on fire or spill any fuel.
The FAA and NTSB were both notified of the incident.
