# Accident 19970921027769A: Amtr ROTORWAYEXEC, Westminister, MD, September 21, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 21, 1997, 14:45 local time
- Place: Westminister, MD
- Airport: Carrol County Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Forced Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.6496° N, 77.0401° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6496&lon=-77.0401&mi=10
- Aircraft: N94CJ, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N94CJ-2018-01-29) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Pohlman J W/Pohlman C ROTORWAY EX 90 (registry code 05604FD, https://openairdocs.org/model/pohlman-j-w-pohlman-c-rotorway-ex-90) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG (registry code 99999, https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AMTR ROTORWAYEXEC
- Reported engine: AMTRRW ROTWY162
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 762 total, 201 in this make and model, 33 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB IAD97LA121](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD97LA121) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970921027769A

## Narrative

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

EXPERIMENTAL ROTORWAY LOST ENGINE POWER AND CRASHED. OTHER CIRCUMSTANCES ARE UNKNOWN. (.4) ON SEPTEMBER 21, 1997, ABOUT 1445 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A HOMEBUILT ROTORWAY EXEC 90, N94CJ; WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AS IT IMPACTED THE GROUND DURING A FORCED LANDING AT CARROLL COUNTY REGIONAL/JACK B. POAGE FIELD (W54), WESTMINSTER, MARYLAND. THE CERTIFICATED PRIVATE PILOT/CO-OWNER RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED FOR THE PERSONAL LOCAL FLIGHT CONDUCTED UNDER 14 CFR PART 91. THE PILOT FLEW THE HELICOPTER IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN FOR 40 MINUTES, PERFORMING TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS. HE REPORTED THAT "AT 200 FEET ON FINAL APPROACH WITH 19 INCHES OF MANIFOLD PRESSURE SET, THE ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING." THE PILOT RECALLED GLANCING AT THE CARBURETOR AIR TEMPERATURE GAUGE AND IT WAS NOT IN THE YELLOW CAUTION RANGE. DURING THE DESCENT, THE PILOT MANEUVERED TO AVOID AN EMBANKMENT AND IMPACTED THE GROUND DAMAGING THE TAIL BOOM AND ROTOR BLADES. A FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION (FAA) INSPECTOR EXAMINED THE HELICOPTER. HIS EXAMINATION REVEALED NO MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS WITH THE ENGINE. THE INSPECTOR REPORTED THAT THE ENGINE STARTED AND RAN   WITHOUT ANY DIFFICULTY. A PILOT, WHO HAD FLOWN A ANOTHER HELICOPTER, TOLD THE INSPECTOR THAT HE WAS REQUIRED TO USE CARBURETOR HEAT THAT MORNING. THE TEMPERATURE/DEW POINT RECORDED BY THE AUTOMATED WEATHER OBSERVING SYSTEM (AWOS) AT W54 WAS: 57 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT AND 38 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, RESPECTIVELY. UTILIZING THE "ICING PROBABILITY CURVES" CHARTS, THESE TEMPERATURES COMBINED WITH A GLIDE POWER SETTING, PLACED THE CARBURETOR WITHIN THE SERIOUS ICING RANGE. EXAMINATION OF THE HELICOPTER REVEALED THAT THE CARBURETOR HEAT WAS PRESET PRIOR TO FLIGHT, AND NOT ACCESSIBLE FROM INSIDE THE COCKPIT. AFTER THE ACCIDENT, THE FAA RECOMMENDED TO THE MANUFACTURER THAT A SWITCH BE PLACED IN THE COCKPIT. THE MANUFACTURER COMPLETED A MODIFICATION ALLOWING CONTROL OF THE CARBURETOR HEAT FROM INSIDE THE CABIN.

## 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 IAD97LA121](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD97LA121), Sep 21, 1997: Pohlman/Pohlman Rotorway Exec 90 (N94CJ), Westminster, MD, substantial damage. Probable cause: The loss of power due to carburetor icing. A factor to this accident was the carburetor heat was not accessible from within the cockpit.

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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