- Date
- July 20, 1987, 12:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Milpitas, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N91338Piper PA-28-161
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 13, 1988
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19870720035569A
- Case key
- 25644
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
While climbing to cruise plt heard a loud knocking noise followed by 'violent vibrations' & a loss of power. Plt made a frcd lnding in a newly excavated construction site & went over an embankment. Inves revealed deformation of the #4 cylinder valve cover. #4 exhaust valve rocker arm was found to be broken. Review of acft maintenance records revealed that AD 87-10-06 which incorporates Lycoming service bulletin (sb) 477A was accomp 78.7 hrs prior to the accident. The sb requires rocker arms that do not have a wall thickness of.075 be replaced. If the rocker arm passes the thickness exam the rocker arm oil drip hole outer edge must be 'burred' to the approx .030 radius prior to reassembly. The rocker arm was measured using a round anvil micrometer. The measurement met the min dimension of .075. After the accident, met lab exam revealed fracture features of high cycle fatigue & overstress. The origin of the fatigue was traced to the reworked oil drip hole which did not meet .030 radius. The wall thickness measured .055 using a measuring microscope.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N91338
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-161
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 288616008
- Airframe hours
- 368
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D3G, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Flying Country Club, Inc.
- Registered owner
- R.F. Buttler
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 17, 1987 · 79 hours before
- Departed
- RHV · San Jose, CA
- Destination
- CCR · Concord, CA
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- RHV · Reid Hillview
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
- 50
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 101 total · 101 in this make and model · 28 as pilot in command · 49 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RHV, 8 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.