# NTSB CEN20LA267: Titan Tornado, N900WH, Mankato, KS, July 6, 2020 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Class 3 · Limited · Final report - Date: July 6, 2020, 07:55 local (12:55 UTC) - Place: Mankato, KS - Coordinates: 39.802667, -98.219596 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8027&lon=-98.2196&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Takeoff: Unknown or undetermined](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 1 serious - Status: Completed - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 3 - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: FAA FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 101553 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN20LA267 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/101553/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=101553 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN20LA267 ## Probable cause A total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined based on available information. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Engine (reciprocating)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01058500): Aircraft › Aircraft power plant · Unknown/Not determined (probable cause); cases with it: [Bennett Ivan Charles TITAN TORNADO, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01058500/cases.md?model=05607XU), [All aircraft, 497 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01058500/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Takeoff: Unknown or undetermined](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000) (defining event); cases with it: [Bennett Ivan Charles TITAN TORNADO, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000/sequence.md?model=05607XU), [All aircraft, 1,703 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000/sequence.md) ## Analysis A witness saw the airplane taxi to the runway for takeoff. He was inside his hangar when he heard the airplane take off and the sound of the engine change then quit. He went outside and saw the airplane descending below the tree line. The witness went to the accident site, and the pilot reported to him that the engine shook “real bad” before it lost power. Numerous attempts to schedule an engine examination with a local mechanic were unsuccessful.The reason for the loss of engine power could not be determined. ## Factual narrative On July 6, 2020, about 0755 central daylight time, a Titan Tornado II airplane, N900WH, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Mankato, Kansas. The non-certificated pilot was seriously injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to a witness at the airport, about 0750, he saw the pilot taxi the airplane to runway 17. Shortly after, the airplane took off. The witness heard the engine’s noise change and it sounded like the engine stopped running. He went outside his hangar to look at the airplane and saw it as it descended behind trees. The airplane impacted the terrain along a tree line that bordered the east side of the runway. When he responded to the accident site, the witness was told by the pilot that the engine started shaking “real bad” just before it quit. The pilot thought that the propeller had broken. According to the witness, the propeller was intact except for a portion that was damaged when the airplane flipped over; he found pieces of the propeller near the wreckage site. The fuselage and both wings sustained substantial damage. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector responded to the accident site and collected additional information. The airplane had come to rest inverted and was leaking fuel, so it was turned upright. A visual inspection did not detect any anomalies. The airplane was moved to the pilot’s hangar. The pilot was reported to be a student training for his sport pilot certificate. Over several weeks following the accident, numerous attempts were made to coordinate an engine examination. The FAA inspector contacted a local Airframe and Powerplants mechanic who was willing to do the work and had performed the previous condition inspection on the airplane. However, due to the mechanic’s limited availability and the need for FAA oversight because the mechanic had done the condition inspection, the examination was not completed. Further attempts to coordinate an engine examination with the mechanic were unsuccessful; hence, an engine examination was not accomplished. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N900WH](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N900WH), registered now, S/N D99912SOHK0334 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: TITAN TORNADO (II) - Registry model: [Bennett Ivan Charles TITAN TORNADO](https://openairdocs.org/model/bennett-ivan-charles-titan-tornado) (registry code 05607XU) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG](https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (registry code 99999) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: D99912SOHK0334 - Year built: 1999 - Engines: Jabiru 2200A 85 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Pierce Matthew L - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental light sport (Special) - Airport: TKO, Mankato, runway 17, 3,450 × 50 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 64; injuries: serious; seat: front ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 60° at 3 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 6,000 ft broken - Temperature: 81 °F, dew point 72 °F - Altimeter: 30.02 inHg - Observed at: KCNK, 30 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 20200706011059A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200706011059A), Jul 6, 2020: Bennett Ivan Charles TITAN TORNADO, Mankato, KS, Substantial damage. After takeoff, aircraft experienced engine failure. The pilot attempted to return to the runway but did not make it. During the impact with the ground, the… ## Docket (4 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 24, 2022, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=101553. 963 KB in all. - Case findings (item 1, PDF, 2 pages, 116 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=14297027&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=case%20findings%20cen20la267-Rel.pdf - Photos (item 2, PDF, 2 pages, 2 photos, 569 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=14189563&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Photos%202%20CEN20LA267-Rel.pdf - Witness statement (item 3, PDF, 2 pages, 1 photo, 184 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=14189455&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=witness%20statement_Redacted-Rel.pdf - CEN21LA267, changes to the factual report (item 4, PDF, 1 page, 94 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=14381164&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=CEN20LA267%20Factual%20Report%20Changes-Rel.pdf 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.