14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, December 27, 2013 in Lodi, CA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 01/12/2015
Aircraft: STINSON 108 1, registration: N8848K
Injuries: 2 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.
The pilot reported that, shortly after takeoff, the engine began to sputter and that it eventually lost all power. The pilot was unable to return to the airport and initiated a forced landing to an open field. During the landing, the airplane struck a berm, nosed over, and then came to rest inverted. A postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the crankshaft and camshaft had broken adjacent to the accessory section. A metallurgical examination of the crankshaft fracture surfaces revealed a thumbnail-shaped pattern consistent with fatigue that had initiated at the crankshaft surface near the edge of the No. 2 connecting rod journal. It is possible that the fatigue initiated due to the No. 2 connecting rod bearing shifting during operation. The camshaft fracture features were consistent with overstress. Maintenance records indicated that the last annual inspection was completed about 9 months before the accident and that, at that time, the engine had accumulated about 250 hours since major overhaul.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The fatigue failure of the crankshaft, which resulted in a total loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing.
HISTORY OF FLIGHT
On December 27, 2013, about 1055 Pacific standard time, a Stinson 108-1 airplane, N8848K, experienced a loss of engine power, and the pilot made a forced landing in an open field near Lodi, California. The owner/pilot operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. The pilot and one passenger were not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage to its wings and fuselage when it struck a berm and nosed over during the landing roll out. The airplane had departed from the Kingdon Airpark (O20), Lodi, about 1030, and was destined for the Modesto City-County Airport-Harry Sham Field (MOD), Modesto, California. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area flight, and no flight plan had been filed.
According to a responding deputy from the San Joaquin Sheriff's Department, the pilot reported that shortly after takeoff the engine started to sputter. He turned back to the departure airport, and attempted to restart the engine. After switching fuel tanks, the engine regained full power, then quit completely. The pilot made a forced landing to an open field, which appeared to be free of obstructions. However, during the landing rollout, the airplane struck a berm and nosed over coming to rest inverted.
According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, who responded to the accident site, the airplane traveled about 400 yards before impacting the ditch. The FAA inspector reported that the pilot had just put in new shoulder harness type seatbelts in the airplane.
The engine was examined at Plain Parts, Pleasant Grove, California, on January 10, 2014. A visual examination revealed that the right side of the engine crankcase near the accessory section had separated. The spark plugs, rocker box covers, and the top of the engine case were removed. The propeller was manually manipulated back and forth; however, full rotation could not be achieved due to damage to the crankshaft, but visible movement of the crankshaft was noted at the rear of the engine. Investigators reported that the crankshaft and cam shaft near the accessory section had broken, and several bearings had been damaged. The crankshaft with a portion of the number one connecting rod, crankshaft main journal bearing, crankshaft connecting rod journal bearing, and a camshaft were shipped to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) metallurgical laboratory in Washington, DC, for further examination.
TEST AND RESEARCH
The NTSB metallurgical laboratory specialist documented the submitted components; the crankshaft was received in two fractured pieces. The fracture occurred through the web between the numbers one and two connecting rod journals. The fracture face was relatively flat with a thumbnail-shaped pattern, which was consistent with fatigue. The fatigue crack initiated at the crankshaft surface, with the primary fatigue crack propagating through 79 percent of the web cross-section. A second fatigue crack had propagated from the opposite side of the fractured crankshaft web and comprised about 5 percent of the web fracture surface. The remaining fracture surface had features consistent with overstress. The specialists reported that the primary fatigue crack propagated from the surface of the crankshaft near the edge of a darkened area on the number two connecting rod journal. According to the specialist, the fracture features of the camshaft were consistent with overstress. The specialists' report is attached to the public docket for this accident.
Maintenance records indicated that during the last annual inspection dated March 12, 2013, the engine had accumulated about 250 hours since the major overhaul.
NTSB Identification: WPR14LA079
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, December 27, 2013 in Lodi, CA
Aircraft: STINSON 108 1, registration: N8848K
Injuries: 2 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 December 27, 2013, about 1055 Pacific standard time, a Stinson 108-1 airplane, N8848K, experienced a loss of engine power and the pilot made a forced landing in an open field near Lodi, California. The owner/pilot operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. The pilot and one passenger were not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage to its wings and fuselage when it struck a berm and nosed over during the landing roll out. The airplane had departed from the Kingdon Airpark (O20), Lodi, about 1030, and was destined for the Modesto City-County Airport-Harry Sham Field (MOD), Modesto, California. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area flight, and no flight plan had been filed.
According to a responding deputy from the San Joaquin Sheriff's Department, the pilot reported that shortly after takeoff the engine started to sputter. He turned back to the departure airport and attempted to restart the engine. After switching fuel tanks, the engine regained full power, then quit completely. The pilot made a forced landing to an open field, which appeared to be free of obstructions. However, during the landing rollout, the airplane struck a berm and nosed over, coming to rest inverted.
AIRCRAFT FORCE LANDED IN A FIELD AND FLIPPED OVER, 13 MILES FROM LODI, CA
http://www.pbase.com/wbyonder/image
http://registry.faa.gov/N8848K
Floyd and Ann Bryant, sore but otherwise OK after an emergency landing on Friday (Dec. 27, 2013).
Tom DuHain/KCRA
Snacking on bacon and smoking a cigar, pilot Floyd Bryant, left, sits the near the wreckage of his Stinson 108-1 Voyager with his wife, Ann Bryant, after the pair escaped an emergency landing unharmed on Friday.
Photo Credit/Courtesy: Dan Evans/News-Sentinel
A Stinson 108-1 Voyager plane came to a rest upside down in a field outside of Lockeford
after the pilot made an emergency landing on Friday. The pilot and
passenger escaped unharmed.
Photo Credit/Courtesy: Dan Evans/News-Sentinel
A pilot and his passenger escaped unharmed after making an emergency landing in an open field in the Lockeford area on Friday.
Photo Credit/Courtesy: Dan Evans/News-Sentinel
A Modesto couple was uninjured and in good spirits after making an emergency landing in a field near Lockeford Friday afternoon.
Roughly seven minutes after Floyd and Ann Bryant left the Lodi Airport, their Stinson 108-1 Voyager aircraft lost power around 10:30 a.m., the couple said.
“Bang, that was it,” Floyd said.
Floyd, 69, who was flying the single-engine plane, made an emergency landing in an open field near Brandt and Clements roads at about 60 miles per hour.
The plane glided along the ground for more than 100 yards before it dipped into a small gully, causing it to flip onto it’s roof. Aside from a couple of small cuts to Floyd’s hand, the couple walked away unscathed.
“We’re very lucky,” Ann said, puffing on a cigarette.
The couple said they flew to Lodi Friday morning for breakfast and were returning home to Modesto when their plane lost power.
Floyd’s had his pilot’s license since the 1960s, but Ann said this was the couple’s last flight.
The couple was on the ground for about 30 minutes before paramedics, Clements Fire Department, California Highway Patrol, Federal Aviation Administration officials and the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Department arrived to the remote scene.
As authorities examined the plane, Floyd set up a folding chair and sparked up a cigar. Ann walked over and handed her husband strips of bacon.
“Looks like she saved your bacon,” a CHP officer said.
Source: http://www.lodinews.com
Story and Photo Gallery: http://www.kcra.com
This Stinson 108-1 Voyager ended up on its roof in an open field when the engine lost power just minutes after takeoff from Lodi's airport Friday. The pilot and passenger were not hurt, Dec. 27, 2013.
SACRAMENTO - A small plane made a forced landing just minutes after taking off from Lodi's airport Friday morning.
The single engine Stinson 108 plane ended up on its roof at about 10:50 a.m. on ranch land south of Brandt and Skaggs Ranch roads in San Joaquin County.
Pilot Floyd Bryant, 69, said he and wife Ann had taken off from Lodi for their home in Modesto when the engine failed. He looked for a road or airstrip to put down the plane but had to settle for the pasture.
The plane landed on its wheels but hit a ditch still going about 30 miles per hour, which caused it to overturn, Bryant said.
Bryant had a few cuts and bruises from the ordeal. His wife was not hurt.
Bryant, who has had his pilot's license since 1968, said it was probably going to be the last time he flew. He also said he wasn't planning on repairing the Stinson.
The couple had flown up from Modesto to have breakfast in Lodi.
