20230123000789I

Incident · No damage

FAA incident report · Vans RV-12 · Boise, ID · January 23, 2023

Date
January 23, 2023 · 15:35 local
Place
Boise, ID
Airport
Boise Air Terminal/Gowen Fld
Phase of flight
Takeoff: Departure Roll
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
No damage
Aircraft
N239VA
Reported as
Vans RV-12
Reported engine
ROTAX 912ULS series
People aboard
2
Fatal injuries
0
Other injuries
0
Pilot’s certificates
Commercial pilot, flight instructor
Pilot’s flight hours
815 total

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.

Pilot in command (PIC)/instructor reported engine was not at the proper RPM during takeoff roll on a training flight with a student pilot. Pic/instructor aborted takeoff and returned to maintenance. The reduced RPM was determined to be vapor lock of the 91 non-ethanol (winter blend) fuel being used. Blending the 91 non-ethanol with 100LL avgas has seemed to resolve the issue.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT IN COMMAND (PIC)/INSTRUCTOR REPORTED ENGINE WAS NOT AT THE PROPER RPM DURING TAKEOFF ROLL ON A TRAINING FLIGHT WITH A STUDENT PILOT. PIC/INSTRUCTOR ABORTED TAKEOFF AND RETURNED TO MAINTENANCE. THE REDUCED RPM WAS DETERMINED TO BE VAPOR LOCK OF THE 91 NON-ETHANOL (WINTER BLEND) FUEL BEING USED. BLENDING THE 91 NON-ETHANOL WITH 100LL AVGAS HAS SEEMED TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE.