- Date
- August 8, 1999, 07:45 local (12:45 UTC)
- Place
- Oberlin, KS
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N197SKWeatherly 201B
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 18, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19990808026749A
- Case key
- 47072
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
Engine failure due to an undertorqued carburetor fulcrum screw. Contributing factors were the muddy terrain and the low altitude of the aerial operation.
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 impacted a muddy field following a loss of engine power during an aerial application. The Bendix NA-R9B carburetor fulcrum screw and the carburetor float pivot pin exhibited chatter marks. The fulcrum screw was removed after turning it 1/2 of a turn. The fulcrum screw safety wire was broken. The NA-R9B float carburetor technical overhaul manual states that the fulcrum screw is to be torqued to a value of 100-120 in-lbs.
Factual narrative
On August 8, 1999, at 0745 central daylight time, a Weatherly 201B, N197SK, operated and piloted by a commercial pilot, impacted a muddy field following a loss of engine power during an aerial application of a field, located approximately 3 miles west and 1-1/4 miles south of Oberlin, Kansas. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The 14 CFR Part 137 agricultural flight was not operating on a flight plan. The pilot sustained no injuries. The flight departed the pilot's private airport at 0700.
The pilot stated that he was 100 feet agl "coming out of a 180 degree turn when the engine abruptly lost power. He was working a field from east to west. The oil and fuel pressure was "ok". The engine was barely running and he could not bring the power back up. He did not "pull" the carburetor heat during the loss of engine power. He stated that he did not have a choice of where to land as the engine stopped. During the landing, the main landing gear separated from the aircraft and its belly became shredded.
Inspection of the airplane by the Federal Aviation Administration revealed that there was 28 gallons of fuel aboard. The Bendix NA-R9B carburetor fulcrum screw and the carburetor float pivot pin exhibited chatter marks. The fulcrum screw was removed after turning it 1/2 of a turn. The fulcrum screw safety wire was broken. The NA-R9B float carburetor technical overhaul manual states that the fulcrum screw is to be torqued to a value of 100-120 in-lbs.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N197SK
- Reported as
- Weatherly 201B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1645
- Airframe hours
- 847
- Engine
- P&W R-985, 450 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Richard E Shaw
- Registered owner
- Richard E Shaw Incorporated
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 5, 1999 · 605 hours before
- Departed
- KS
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
- 47
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 6,742 total · 536 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 100 ft broken
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MCK, 28 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.