- Date
- December 19, 1987, 10:33 local (16:33 UTC)
- Place
- Harlingen, TX
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N8575MBB 109
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 14, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19871219070659A
- Case key
- 22509
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 set of floats which allows a high fuel flow in this carburetor for high power settings used for takeoff, climb, etc., had cracked and swollen to such an extent that they were rubbing against the float chamber walls and float chamber shroud tubes. This interference prevented adequate fuel flow for high power operation of the engine during the takeoff climb which terminated in the accident. There were no entries in the maintenance logs which indicated any maintenance or internal examination of the carburetor since the aircraft was new (1959).
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8575
- Reported as
- MBB 109
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 208
- Airframe hours
- 172
- Engine
- Rolls-Royce 500-29, 1,490 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Confederate Air Force
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 24, 1987 · 11 hours before
- Departed
- HRL
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- HRL · Rio Grande Valley Int., runway 13, 5,950 × 150 ft, dirt
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
- 53
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 20,000 total · 8 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 25 knots, gusting 38
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- HRL, 2 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.