- Date
- August 23, 2000, 07:15 local (13:15 UTC)
- Place
- Buffalo, WY
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N586WPPhelps Rans S-12 Airaile
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 1, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000823012109A
- Case key
- 50078
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
the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing. Contributing factors were the power failure due to a failed rod bearing, and down draft weather condition.
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 pilot said that he was flying at approximately 1,000 feet above the ground when the engine lost power. He selected a landing site for a forced landing, but an unexpected downdraft changed his glide path. He turned to avoid a house, and landed hard on a road. The airplane subsequently slid approximately 50 feet into a fence. Postaccident evaluation of the engine by a mechanic revealed that a rod bearing had failed, and subsequently its associated piston rod bent.
Factual narrative
On August 23, 2000, at 0715 mountain daylight time, a Phelps Rans S-12 Airaile experimental homebuilt airplane, N586WP, experienced a loss of power and was destroyed during a forced landing near Buffalo, Wyoming. The private pilot and his passenger were both seriously injured. The pilot was operating the airplane under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight that originated from Johnson County Airport, Buffalo, Wyoming, approximately 15 minutes before the accident. No flight plan had been filed.
The pilot said that he was flying approximately 1,000 feet above the ground when the engine lost power. He selected a landing site for a forced landing, but an unexpected downdraft changed his glide path. He turned to avoid a house, and landed hard on a road. The airplane subsequently slid approximately 50 feet into a fence.
Postaccident examination of the Rotax 582UL engine by a mechanic revealed that a rod bearing had failed, and subsequently its associated piston rod bent.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N586WP
- Reported as
- Phelps Rans S-12 Airaile (RANS S-12)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 1191149
- Airframe hours
- 180
- Engine
- Rotax 582UL, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Randolph A. Ricard
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 19, 2000 · 30 hours before
- Departed
- BYG
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
- 46
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 100 total · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 162 °F, dew point 93 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BYG, 6 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.