# NTSB ANC03LA016: Piper J5A, N270JS, Soldotna, AK, December 1, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: December 1, 2002, 12:00 local (16:00 UTC) - Place: Soldotna, AK - Coordinates: 60.476112, -151.032501 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=60.4761&lon=-151.0325&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report June 25, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA Anchorage, FSDO-03 - NTSB case key (mKey): 56184 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC03LA016 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/56184/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC03LA016 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to remove all water from the airplane's fuel supply during the preflight inspection, which resulted in a loss of engine power and subsequent hard landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, takeoff - initial climb - aircraft preflight - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - fluid,fuel - contamination,water (cause) - Forced landing, emergency landing after takeoff - Hard landing, emergency landing after takeoff - Main gear collapsed, emergency landing after takeoff ## Analysis The flight departed on runway 07, and the pilot started a right climbing turn when the airplane's engine lost power. The pilot applied carburetor heat, and checked the position of the fuel tank selector, but he could not restart the engine. About 200 feet above ground level, he turned toward the runway. The airplane landed hard on the runway, the left main landing gear collapsed, and the left wing struck the runway. There were no known mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. The mechanic who recovered the airplane removed more than a pint of water from the right wing fuel sump. The pilot said he fueled the airplane with 87-octane auto gas from 5-gallon cans prior to the flight. He further said he should have strained the fuel through a water trap filter. ## Factual narrative On December 1, 2002, about 1200 Alaska standard time, a Piper J5A airplane, N270JS, sustained substantial damage when the main landing gear collapsed during an emergency landing following a loss of engine power at the Soldotna Airport, Soldotna, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, at the time of the accident. The solo commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on December 9, the pilot said he had taken off on runway 07, and started a right climbing turn, when the engine lost power. The pilot said he applied carburetor heat, and checked the position of the fuel tank selector, but he could not restart the engine. He said he was about 200 feet above ground level, and turned toward the runway. He said the airplane landed hard on the runway, the left main landing gear collapsed, and the left wing struck the runway. The pilot said there were no known mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident, however, he said the mechanic who recovered the airplane removed more than a pint of water from the right wing fuel sump. The pilot said he fueled the airplane with 87-octane auto gas from 5-gallon cans prior to the flight, and stated he should have strained the fuel through a water trap filter. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N270JS](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N270JS), registered now, S/N 5-18, built 1940 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Piper J5A - Registry model: [Piper J5A](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-j5a) (registry code 7100702) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-290 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-290-series) (registry code 41506, 4 cycle) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 5-18 - Airframe hours: 2000 - Engines: Lycoming O-290D 125 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: James R. Babcock - Registered owner: James R. Babcock - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, November 11, 2002, 4 hours before - Departed: SXQ, Soldotna, AK - Airport: SXQ, Soldotna, runway 07, 5,000 × 130 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 47; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review September 5, 2001; seat: left; flight hours: 1,180 total, 500 in this make and model, 1,120 as pilot in command, 20 in the last 90 days, 4 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 90° at 3 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 100 ft broken - Temperature: 30 °F, dew point 30 °F - Altimeter: 30.11 inHg - Observed at: PASX, 1 nm away ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20021201033079A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021201033079A), Dec 1, 2002: Piper J5A, Soldotna, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) This accident involved a wheel equipped Piper J-5A airplane flown by a commercially rated pilot. Prior to flight, the pilot added about seven gallons of… ## Other investigations on N270JS (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 ANC05LA042](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC05LA042), Feb 20, 2005: Piper J-5A (N270JS), Kenai, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for a precautionary landing, which resulted in a collision with a snow berm during the landing flare. Factors contributing to the accident were flat light… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.