- Date
- April 15, 1990, 17:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- Griffin, GA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N1034CCorben BABY-ACE
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 4, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900415008899A
- Case key
- 8080
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
An improper fuel system (installed by the home builder), and continued operation of the aircraft with a known deficiency, which resulted in fuel starvation.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
After take off in a climb attitude, the engine of the homebuilt aircraft lost power. When the nose was lowered, it restarted, but with insufficient altitude to clear the trees. A witness who had previously flown the airplane stated the engine had quit with him under similar circumstances when the fuel tank was about 1/4 full. The engine ran well after the accident. The FAA inspector examined the engine and noted that the fuel tank was mounted directly behind and level with the engine. When the fuel was about 1/4 full, a high nose attitude would result in pooling of the fuel at the rear of the fuel tank. Subsequently, there was insufficient pressure in the gravity fed system to sustain engine operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1034C
- Reported as
- Corben BABY-ACE
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- N1034C
- Airframe hours
- 1,719
- Engine
- Continental A-65-8, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ken Berger
- Registered owner
- Kenneth F Burger
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 20, 1989 · 20 hours before
- Departed
- 4GA6 · Griffin, GA
- Airport
- 4GA6 · Beaverbrook, runway 33, 2,100 × 150 ft, grass/turf
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 34
- Certificates
- Flight engineer, Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 5,385 total · 1 in this make and model · 4,036 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 320° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 57 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.