- Date
- July 31, 1992, 11:50 local (16:50 UTC)
- Place
- Delphi, IN
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2739Alkire Pietenpol
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 26, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920731028469A
- Case key
- 15256
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
Separation of the propeller while in flight, and unsuitable terrain to effect a forced landing.
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 in cruise flight when propeller separated. The pilot made a forced landing in a soft field with high grass. The landing gear sank into the ground during the rollout, and the airplane nosed over. The investigation revealed that four of six propeller retaining bolts were cracked and rusted across their diameter in amounts varying from 30 to 100%.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2739
- Reported as
- Alkire Pietenpol
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 1
- Airframe hours
- 402
- Engine
- Ford B, 50 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Alkire, Richard P
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Unknown · July 25, 1992 · 2 hours before
- Departed
- 5I8 · Greentown, IN
- Destination
- RZL · Rensselaer, IN
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
- 54
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 1,836 total · 402 in this make and model · 1,717 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 340° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,100 ft broken
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LAF, 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.