# Accident 20210730012249A: Enstrom 280FX, Colchester, VT, July 30, 2021

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 30, 2021, 16:24 local time
- Place: Colchester, VT
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.5687° N, 73.3132° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.5687&lon=-73.3132&mi=10
- Aircraft: N36DK, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N36DK-2023-10-17) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Enstrom 280FX (registry code 3300506, https://openairdocs.org/model/enstrom-280fx) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming HI0-360 series (registry code 41553, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-hi0-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: ENSTROM 280FX
- Reported engine: LYCOMING HI0-360
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 2,223 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA21LA309](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA21LA309) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20210730012249A

## Narrative

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

ON 7/30/21 AT 2025Z N36DK EXPERIENCED SMOKE IN THE COCKPIT AND RISING EXHAUST GAS TEMPERATURE FOLLOWED BY PARTIAL THEN COMPLETE POWER LOSS FOR UNKNOWN REASONS. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED A TREE ON APPROACH AND LANDED HARD ON A CAUSEWAY BORDERED BY WATER ON BOTH SIDES WITH NUMEROUS BYSTANDERS IN THE AREA. AFTER LANDING THE AIRCRAFT WAS CONSUMED BY A POST CRASH FIRE. THE PILOT AND SOLE OCCUPANT SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURY AND WAS ABLE TO EXIT THE AIRCRAFT. NO REGULATORY DEVIATIONS WERE NOTED AND NO FURTHER ACTION IS RECOMMENDED.

## 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 ERA21LA309](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA21LA309), Jul 30, 2021: Enstrom 280 (N36DK), Colchester, VT, destroyed. Probable cause: An in-flight fire originating in the engine compartment near the turbocharger from a source that could not be determined, which resulted in a loss of engine power and led to an autorotation and a…

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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