- Date
- November 22, 1987, 14:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- San Diego, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N53917Bellanca 8GCBC
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 25, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19871122066499A
- Case key
- 25912
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
As the plt was completing a banner towing opn, he applied pwr to climb from 500' to 1500' to return to the arpt. As he advanced the throttle, the eng began running rough, then lost pwr. He said the cockpit filled with smoke & he released the banner. He steered the acft away from surfers & ditched it in rough water. The acft & eng were badly damaged by the hvy surf & salt water. The eng was eventually recovered, examined & torn down. No discrepancies were found, except the eng driven oil pump housing & impellers showed signs of foreign object damage. A witness had taken a photo of the the acft before it was ditched. The photo showed a hvy trail of smoke (believed to be from oil) coming from the acft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N53917
- Reported as
- Bellanca 8GCBC
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 194-76
- Airframe hours
- 2,095
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-C2E, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Air Ads
- Registered owner
- Lubshilt & Tugs Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 5, 1987 · 98 hours before
- Departed
- SDM · San Diego, CA
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 44
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 1,518 total · 952 in this make and model · 1,376 as pilot in command · 82 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 8 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SAN
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.