# Accident 20170925011579A: Ervin Eris E QUICKSILVER GT-400, Cleburne, TX, September 25, 2017

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 25, 2017, 17:27 local time
- Place: Cleburne, TX
- Airport: Blackwood Airpark Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 32.4097° N, 97.3872° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.4097&lon=-97.3872&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5112S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5112S-2019-03-09) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Ervin Eris E QUICKSILVER GT-400 (registry code 05902NH, https://openairdocs.org/model/ervin-eris-e-quicksilver-gt-400) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Rotax 503 DCDI (registry code 55566, https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-503-dcdi) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: ERVIN ERIS E QUICKSILVER GT-400
- Reported engine: ROTAX 503 DCDI
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN17LA368](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN17LA368) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20170925011579A

## Narrative

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

THE NON-CERTIFICATED OWNER AND OPERATOR DEPARTED IN THE AIRCRAFT FROM RUNWAY 17 AT BLACKWOOD AIRPARK AIRPORT (TX46). SHORTLY AFTER LIFTOFF, THE AIRCRAFT ENGINE LOST POWER. THE NON-CERTIFICATED PILOT TURNED RIGHT AND ATTEMPTED TO RETURN TO THE AIRPORT RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT LOST ALTITUDE AND COLLIDED WITH A FENCE AND TREES ADJACENT TO THE DEPARTURE END OF THE RUNWAY 17. IT CAME TO REST AT COORDINATES: 32 24? 22.55? N 97 23? 15.66? W. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED. NO PILOT RECORDS HAVE BEEN LOCATED.

THE ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT WAS IDENTIFIED AS AN ERVIN ERIS E QUICKSILVER GT-400. THE REGISTRATION ON THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN ISSUED 10/07/2015 TO THE OWNER AND OPERATOR. IT WAS NOT FOUND IN THE AIRCRAFT. NO OTHER AIRWORTHINESS DOCUMENTS OR AIRCRAFT RECORDS WERE FOUND. A WITNESS AT THE ACCIDENT SCENE STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT RECORDS HAD BEEN DESTROYED IN A FLOOD APPROXIMATELY TWO YEARS AGO. THERE WAS A STRONG ODOR OF AUTOMOTIVE GASOLINE AT THE ACCIDENT SCENE. A VISUAL INSPECTION OF THE INSIDE OF THE FUEL TANK REVEALED THE TANK WAS HALF FULL. THE FUEL APPEARED TO BE A MIXTURE OF AVGAS AND AUTOMOTIVE GASOLINE.

UPON FURTHER INVESTIGATION; THE AIRCRAFT SHOWED SIGNS OF POOR MAINTENANCE UPKEEP. ENGINE FUEL LINES WERE FOUND BRITTLE, CRACKED, AND BROKEN. THE ENGINE HAS TWO CARBURETORS. BOTH CARBURETOR FUEL BOWLS WERE FOUND DRY. A FUEL LINE FROM THE FUEL TANK TO THE ENGINE WAS FOUND BROKEN FREE AND SHOWED TO BE IN POOR CONDITION. A MASS OF WHAT APPEARED TO BE PUTTY WAS FOUND PLACED AROUND THE FUEL OUTLET CONNECTOR ON THE BOTTOM OF THE FUEL TANK. THE FUEL LINE AT THIS LOCATION WAS BROKEN. IT APPEARS THE PUTTY WAS PLACED HERE TO STEM A FUEL LEAK. THE ENGINE AIR FILTER WAS EXTREMELY DIRTY.

## 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 CEN17LA368](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN17LA368), Sep 25, 2017: Eris E. Ervin Quicksilver (N5112S), Cleburne, TX, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: An engine loss of power due to fuel starvation from a broken fuel line between the fuel tank and the engine; the loss of engine power prevented the pilot from reaching a suitable landing area.…

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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