20150208001009A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · American AA-1 · Fort Meade, MD · February 8, 2015

Date: February 8, 2015 · 14:07 local
Place: Fort Meade, MD
Airport: Tipton Airport
Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Substantial damage
Aircraft: N6116L
NTSB investigation: NTSBERA15LA123
Reported as: American AA-1
Reported engine: Lycoming 0-235 series
People aboard: 2
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 2
Pilot’s certificates: Airline transport, flight instructor
Pilot’s flight hours: 5,900 total100 in this make and model12 in the last 90 days

N6116LRegistration cancelled Mar 14, 2018 · American AA-1S/N AA1-0316 · Built 1970 Airframe modelAmerican AA-1 Engine modelLycoming 0-235 series4 cycle

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Owners of aircraft were having issues with a rough running engine which is supported by maintenance logbook entries. The aircraft had a substantial but not complete power loss shortly after takeoff which caused the airplane to not be able to climb. The aircraft struck trees and crashed shortly after the first tree was struck.

As the FAA filed it

OWNERS OF AIRCRAFT WERE HAVING ISSUES WITH A ROUGH RUNNING ENGINE WHICH IS SUPPORTED BY MAINTENANCE LOGBOOK ENTRIES. THE AIRCRAFT HAD A SUBSTANTIAL BUT NOT COMPLETE POWER LOSS SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF WHICH CAUSED THE AIRPLANE TO NOT BE ABLE TO CLIMB. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK TREES AND CRASHED SHORTLY AFTER THE FIRST TREE WAS STRUCK.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB ERA15LA123Accident · Serious injuriesLimited investigationFinal reportFort Meade, MDThe mechanic’s failure to detect the incorrect dry valve tappet clearances while troubleshooting ongoing engine issues, which resulted in partial loss of engine power during takeoff. Contributing to the partial loss of engine power was the mechanic's failure…Feb 8, 2015 · Substantial damage