# Accident 19970408010109A: Amtr KOLBMK3, Winter Haven, FL, April 8, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 8, 1997, 12:00 local time
- Place: Winter Haven, FL
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff Ground Roll
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 28.0397° N, 81.7197° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=28.0397&lon=-81.7197&mi=10
- Aircraft: N128BB, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N128BB-2011-02-22) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Lakeland Ultralights KOLB MK III (registry code 05626LN, https://openairdocs.org/model/lakeland-ultralights-kolb-mk-iii) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Bombardier ROTAX (ALL) (registry code 09050, https://openairdocs.org/engine/bombardier-rotax-all) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AMTR KOLBMK3
- Reported engine: ROTAX ROTAX912
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 3,000 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB MIA97LA120](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA97LA120) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970408010109A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(.19) ON APRIL 8, 1997, ABOUT 1200 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, AN UNREGISTERED BASINSKI,  KOLB MK3, EXPERIMENTAL AIRPLANE, N128BB, OPERATING AS A 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT, CRASHED WHILE MANEUVERING IN THE VICINITY OF  WINTER HAVEN'S GILBERT FIELD, WINTER HAVEN, FLORIDA. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT WAS FATALLY INJURED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM LAKE JESSIE ABEAM BROWNS SEAPLANE BASE, WINTER HAVEN, FLORIDA, ABOUT 1 MINUTE BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. WITNESSES LOCATED AT BROWNS SEAPLANE BASE, AND BOATERS LOCATED ON LAKE JESSIE, AT WINTER HAVEN,  OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE MAKING TOUCH-AND-GO LANDINGS TO THE LAKE. THE AIRPLANE TOOK OFF TO THE NORTH AND TURNED TO THE WEST. BLUE AND WHITE COLORED SMOKE WAS OBSERVED COMING FROM THE VICINITY OF THE ENGINE. THE AIRPLANE APPEARED TO LOSE FORWARD AIRSPEED WHILE IN A CLIMB AT ABOUT 100 TO 200 FEET. THE LEFT WING DROPPED DOWN BETWEEN 45 TO 90 DEGREES, THE AIRPLANE ENTERED A SPIN TO THE LEFT, COLLIDING WITH A HOUSE TRAILER AND THE GROUND. (.4) WITNESSES LOCATED AT A SEAPLANE BASE AND BOATERS ON A LAKE OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE MAKING TOUCH-AND-GO LANDINGS AT THE     AT THE LAKE. THE AIRPLANE TOOK OFF TO THE NORTH AND TURNED TO THE WEST. BLUE AND WHITE SMOKE WAS OBSERVED COMING FROM THE VICINITY OF THE ENGINE. THE AIRPLANE APPEARED TO LOOSE FORWARD AIRSPEED WHILE IN A CLIMB AT ABOUT 100 TO 200 FEET. THE LEFT WING DROPPED, THEN THE AIRPLANE ENTERED A SPIN TO THE LEFT AND COLLIDED WITH A HOUSE TRAILER AND THE GROUND. EXAMINATION REVEALED THE OIL SUMP RETURN LINE WAS DISCONNECTED FROM THE OIL SUMP, AND OIL WAS FOUND ON THE LEADING EDGE OF THE EMPENNAGE (BEHIND THE ENGINE). THE OIL SUMP WAS EMPTY, AND THE STAINLESS STEEL CLAMP ON THE RETURN LINE WAS LOOSE. NO OTHER PRECRASH MECHANICAL FAILURE WAS FOUND WITH THE ENGINE, AIRFRAME, OR FLIGHT CONTROLS. (-23) AIRCRAFT WAS PRACTICING TAKE-OFF AND LANDINGS IN LAKE JESSIE.  WITNESSES REPORTED PILOT TOOK OFF TO THE NORTH; AIRCRAFT WAS EMITTING DENSE GRAY SMOKE.  PILOT ATTEMPTED TO RETURN TO LAKE, WAS SEEN IN A 45 DEGREE BANK TOWARD THE WEST.  AIRCRAFT DEPARTED CONTROLLED FLIGHT IN A LEFT SPIN AND CRASHED INTO A MOBILE HOME.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB MIA97LA120](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA97LA120), Apr 8, 1997: Basinski Kolb MK3 (N128BB), Winter Haven, FL, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: failure of the pilot to maintain airspeed after an oil leak occurred, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin and subsequent collision with a residence and the terrain. The oil leak and the…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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