# Accident 20230913015559A: Ercoupe 415-C, Fitzgerald, GA, September 13, 2023

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 13, 2023, 17:00 local time
- Place: Fitzgerald, GA
- Airport: Fitzgerald Municipal Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Unknown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 31.7195° N, 83.2445° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.7195&lon=-83.2445&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2796H (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: ERCOUPE 415-C
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR A&C75 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA23FA370](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA23FA370) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20230913015559A

## Narrative

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

SEPTEMBER 14, 2023, FELLOW INSPECTOR AND I ARRIVED AT THE FITZGERALD AIRPORT (FGZ).  WE MET WITH THE AIRPORT MANAGER, HE STATED HE KNEW THE PILOT INVOLVED IN THE ACCIDENT AND HE DID NOT THINK THE AIRCRAFT HAD FLOWN RECENTLY. HE STATED THE FLIGHT WAS PERFORMED FOR A POTENTIAL BUYER OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE AIRPORT MANAGER WAS ASKED IF HE COULD RETRIEVE RECENT FUEL PURCHASE DATA FOR THE ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT. THE PILOT HAD PURCHASED 10.89 GAL SEPTEMBER 11, 2023. HE ALSO PROVIDED DAILY FUEL SAMPLING AND INSPECTION RECORDS FOR THE PROCEEDING WEEKS. HE STATED THAT HE WITNESSED THE TAKEOFF OF THE AIRCRAFT. HE NOTICED WHAT HE THOUGHT WAS MINOR MISFIRE BUT CLEARED UP AFTER TAKEOFF.

WHEN WE ARRIVED AT THE ACCIDENT SITE, IT WAS SECURED BY MEMBERS OF THE FITZGERALD POLICE DEPARTMENT. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED A CITY STREET PERPENDICULAR TO THE ROAD AND IMPACTED A SHALLOW DITCH. FROM TESTIMONY OF WITNESSES TAKEN BEFORE OUR ARRIVAL, IT APPEARS THE OCCUPANTS WERE THROWN FROM THE AIRCRAFT. THE PILOT OF THE AIRCRAFT CAME TO REST IN FRONT OF THE RIGHT-WING LEADING EDGE AND THE PASSENGER CAME TO REST UPHILL ABOUT 20 FEET IN FRONT OF THE AIRCRAFT. ACCORDING TO THE PLACEMENT AND CONDITION OF THE SEATBELTS, IT DID NOT APPEAR THEY WERE IN USE DURING THE FLIGHT. THE SEAT BELTS WERE CHECKED ON SITE AND FOUND TO BE ATTACHED TO THE AIRFRAME AND SEEMED TO BE IN SERVICEABLE CONDITION.  WHILE AT THE SCENE, WE OBTAINED LOGS AND RECORDS FOR THE AIRCRAFT. THE NTSB INVESTIGATOR ARRIVED, AND WE BEGAN SUPPORTING HIM IN HIS INVESTIGATION. CONTINUITY OF THE FLIGHT CONTROLS WERE VERIFIED FROM JUST BEHIND THE COCKPIT SEATS TO THE ELEVATORS AND RUDDERS. ONCE PICTURES WERE TAKEN AND ITEMS OF INTEREST WERE DOCUMENTED ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ ARRIVED AND REMOVED THE AIRCRAFT. A WITNESS, WHO WAS IN HER HOME AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, REPORTED HEARING THE ENGINE OPERATING AND ASSUMED THE AIRPLANE TO BE FLYING LOW. SHE THEN HEARD THE ENGINE QUIT FOLLOWED BY THE SOUND OF IMPACT. SHE DID NOT WITNESS THE IMPACT.

INSPECTION WAS COMPLETED OF THE FUEL SERVICING AREA. THE AREA WAS KEPT CLEAN, AND THE FILTERS WERE CLEARLY MARKED WITH DATE CHANGE AND DUE DATES. THE AIRPORT MANAGER WAS ASKED TO PERFORM A FUEL SAMPLE. .5 GAL OF FUEL WAS DISPENSED INTO A WHITE BUCKET, SEVERAL BLACK PARTICLES WERE NOTED, AND HE STATED IT WOULD CLASSIFY THE CLARITY AS 2A.

## 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 ERA23FA370](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA23FA370), Sep 13, 2023: Ercoupe 415 (N2796H), Fitzgerald, GA, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to perform pre-takeoff engine runup and carburetor heat check procedures, which resulted in rotation with inadequate climb performance, and his subsequent failure to maintain…

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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