20170820017229I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Quad City Ultralight Acft CHALLENGER LW1 · Watervliet, MI · August 20, 2017

Date: August 20, 2017 · 11:40 local
Place: Watervliet, MI
Airport: Watervliet Municipal
Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N5137T
Reported as: Quad City Ultralight Acft Challenger LW1
Reported engine: ROTAX 447
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 900 total75 in this make and model50 in the last 90 days

N5137TRegistration cancelled Jan 6, 2020 · Quad City Ultralight Acft CHALLENGER LW1S/N 0294W0465 · Built 1994 Airframe modelQuad City Ultralight Acft CHALLENGER LW1 Engine modelRotax 4472 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.

An experimental aircraft operating as light sport and flown by a private pilot-certificated owner experienced a power failure for unknown reasons during cruise flight.

The pilot performed a forced landing on a golf course approximately 1.5 mile west of the Watervliet, Michigan airport (40C). Upon landing, the uneven terrain caused the nose gear to collapse during the landing roll, resulting in minor damage to the aircraft.

As the FAA filed it

AN EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT OPERATING AS LIGHT SPORT AND FLOWN BY A PRIVATE PILOT-CERTIFICATED OWNER EXPERIENCED A POWER FAILURE FOR UNKNOWN REASONS DURING CRUISE FLIGHT.

THE PILOT PERFORMED A FORCED LANDING ON A GOLF COURSE APPROXIMATELY 1.5 MILE WEST OF THE WATERVLIET, MICHIGAN AIRPORT (40C). UPON LANDING, THE UNEVEN TERRAIN CAUSED THE NOSE GEAR TO COLLAPSE DURING THE LANDING ROLL, RESULTING IN MINOR DAMAGE TO THE AIRCRAFT.