# NTSB CHI00LA274: Widner Pietenpol Aircamper, N89JW, Andover, MN, August 28, 2000 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 27, 2000, 19:27 local (Aug 28, 2000, 00:27 UTC) - Place: Andover, MN - Coordinates: 45.249931, -93.33049 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=45.2499&lon=-93.3305&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report October 23, 2001 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 51073 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI00LA274 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/51073/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI00LA274 ## Probable cause The trees and the unsuitable terrain for landing encountered during the forced landing. Factors were the side slip to avoid the trees initiated by the pilot, the fractured piston, and the cracked cylinder. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(partial) - mech failure/malf, cruise - engine assembly,cylinder - fractured (contributing factor) - engine assembly,cylinder - cracked (contributing factor) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - In flight collision with terrain/water, emergency landing - object - tree(s) (cause) - maneuver to avoid obstructions - initiated, pilot in command (contributing factor) - unsuitable terrain or takeoff/landing/taxi area - encountered (cause) ## Analysis The airplane was destroyed during a forced landing after a loss of engine power while in cruise flight. The pilot said that, at about 2 hours into the flight, he, "...heard, or felt a single jolt or retort. The plane continued to function normally. A short time later it began to smell 'hot' in the cockpit. Gauges were normal... Almost immediately I noted my cylinder head temperature had climbed to 400 [degrees] F." The pilot said that he subsequently saw blue smoke from the left side of the engine and it began to run rough. The pilot attempted to land in a "weed" field. He said that during the landing he, "...was approaching the trees at the end of the field so I side slipped to the ground striking the [right] wing, then the nose and coming to rest facing the direction I came from." The pilot reported that subsequent to the accident, he found that the number 4 cylinder and piston were damaged. He found the cylinder cracked and the piston skirt broken. He reported the extent of the damage to the aircraft as "destroyed". The pilot reported no other anomalies. ## Factual narrative On August 27, 2000, at 1927 central daylight time, an amateur-built Widner Pietenpol Aircamper, N89JW, piloted by a private pilot, was destroyed during a forced landing, near Andover, Minnesota, following a loss of engine power while in cruise flight. The personal 14 CFR Part 91 flight was not on a flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot, who was the sole occupant, sustained minor injuries. The flight originated from Alexandria, Minnesota at 1720, and was en route to the Anoka County-Blaine Airport (ANE), Minneapolis, Minnesota. In a written statement, the pilot said that, at about 2 hours into the flight, he, "...heard, or felt a single jolt or retort. The plane continued to function normally. A short time later it began to smell 'hot' in the cockpit. Gauges were normal... Almost immediately I noted my cylinder head temperature had climbed to 400 [degrees] F." The pilot said that he subsequently saw blue smoke from the left side of the engine and it began to run rough. The pilot attempted to land in a "weed" field about 10 miles northwest of ANE. He said that during the landing he, "...was approaching the trees at the end of the field so I side slipped to the ground striking the [right] wing, then the nose and coming to rest facing the direction I came from." The pilot reported that subsequent to the accident, he found that the number 4 cylinder and piston were damaged. He found the cylinder cracked and the piston skirt broken. He reported the extent of the damage to the aircraft as "destroyed". The pilot reported no other anomalies. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N89JW](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N89JW-2000-10-05), registration cancelled 2000-10-05, S/N 012 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Widner PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER (PIETENPOL) - Registry model: [Widner Jack Allen PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER](https://openairdocs.org/model/widner-jack-allen-pietenpol-aircamper) (registry code 7040392) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: 012 - Engines: Chevrolet CORVAIR 80 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Destroyed - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Craig W. Amundson - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, September 20, 1999, 49 hours before - Departed: AXN, ALEXANDRIA, MN - Destination: ANE, MINNEAPOLIS, MN ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 50; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: rear; flight hours: 251 total, 148 in this make and model, 191 as pilot in command, 34 in the last 90 days, 8 in the last 30 days, 5 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 150° at 9 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 167 °F, dew point 149 °F - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg - Observed at: ANE, 10 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 20000827008489A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000827008489A), Aug 27, 2000: Andover, MN, No damage. (-23) On aug. 28, 2000, at 1927 hours local time, a pietenpol aircamper (experimental) a/c owned and operated by craig amundson, lost power and subsequently… 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.