- Date
- July 1, 2000, 08:00 local (13:00 UTC)
- Place
- Columbus, MS
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N60698Spurgeon Avid Bandit
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 2, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000701012449A
- Case key
- 49615
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 owner/builder's improper installation that resulted in the fuel line being snagged, resulting in fuel starvation and an inflight loss of engine power and subsequent damage to the airplane during the forced landing.
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 stated that he was en route to Columbus-Lowndes County Airport, and the aircraft engine ceased operating 10 minutes into the flight. He further stated that he had attempted to restart the engine, but was unsuccessful, so he executed a forced landing to an open area, surrounded by timber, and during the landing the airplane incurred damage. Follow-on examination of the accident airplane revealed that a fuel line was being crushed between the seat and the frame, which starved the engine of fuel.
Factual narrative
On July 1, 2000, about 0800 central daylight time, a Paul M. Spurgeon Avid Bandit, N60698, registered to and operated by a private owner as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, experienced an engine failure about 4 miles southwest of Columbus-Lowndes County Airport, near Columbus, Mississippi. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured, and the aircraft incurred substantial damage. The flight originated the same day, about 0745.
The pilot stated that he departed from his private airfield in Brooksville, Mississippi, en route for Columbus-Lowndes County Airport, and the aircraft engine had ceased operating 10 minutes into the flight. The pilot further stated that he attempted to restart the engine, but was unsuccessful, so he performed an emergency landing to an open area, surrounded by timber. During the landing rollout, the right main landing gear struck a tree stump, the airplane flipped over on its back, and the vertical stabilizer was damaged.
An FAA inspector who conducted the on scene investigation of the accident aircraft stated that the pilot told him that he had departed with 7 gallons of fuel in the left tank. According to the inspector, the pilot further stated that the airplane was not equipped with a fuel selector, and fuel is gravity fed to the engine from either tank. The inspector said that he examined the area under the left fuel tank and the ground under the tank was saturated with fuel.
The pilot conducted a follow-on examination of the airplane, and stated that a fuel line adjacent to the seat was found to have crimped, restricting the flow of fuel to the engine. According to the pilot, the fuel line was being crushed between the seat and the frame, which starved the engine of fuel.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N60698
- Reported as
- Spurgeon Avid Bandit (AVID BANDI)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 1472E
- Airframe hours
- 605
- Engine
- Subaru EA-81, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Paul M. Spurgeon
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 20, 2000 · 30 hours before
- Departed
- Private Airport, MS
- Destination
- UBS · Columbus, MS
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
- 52
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,000 total · 605 in this make and model · 2,000 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 50° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- CBM, 14 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.