- Date
- June 23, 1991, 18:35 local (22:35 UTC)
- Place
- Cambridge Jct, MI
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N351RHoward Tierra II
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 9, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910623023189A
- Case key
- 14818
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
Entanglement of the emergency ballistic parachute with the airplane's propeller shaft after it deployed for an undetermined reason. A factor related to the accident was: the aircraft's weight and balance limit was exceeded by the pilot.
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
The airplane was observed flying approximately 200 feet AGL when it began a left hand turn. Witnesses stated that during this turn, the engine seemed to lose power, the airplane started to descend, and the ballistic parachute deployed. The airplane then descended into trees with a steep nose down attitude. An on scene investigation revealed that the parachute shroud line, which was attached to the wing's main spar, had entangled itself around the pusher engine's propeller shaft. A weight and balance calculation revealed the airplane was aproximately 200 pounds above its gross weight limit, and its center of gravity was .4 of an inch forward of the forward limit. The parachute was past due for its two year inspection.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N351R
- Reported as
- Howard Tierra II
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 3601534
- Engine
- Rotax BOMBARDIER, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Gregory A. Moore
- Registered owner
- Gregory A. Moore
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- 83G · Onsted, MI
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
- 45
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 175 total · 147 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JXN, 20 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.