- Date
- May 27, 2005, 11:35 local (15:35 UTC)
- Place
- Palm City, FL
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N401KYHamilton Stoddard Glassair II S
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 28, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20050527016049A
- Case key
- 61616
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
Improper maintenance by other maintenance personnel, which resulted in the throttle cable being loose and detaching from the throttle arm during takeoff, resulting in a loss of engine power.
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
According to the pilot, the takeoff was normal until just after rotation, when he felt a loss of power during the takeoff/initial climb. At an altitude of about 30 feet AGL, he said he saw that the engine rpm had dropped from 2270 rpm to about 1800 rpm, and he immediately concentrated on maintaining airspeed, which had dropped to about 60 to 65 mph. According to the pilot, all he could do was to maintain a wings-level attitude just above stall speed and fly the airplane into the trees. Postcrash examination of the accident airplane was performed by an FAA licensed airframe and powerplant mechanic, under the supervision of an FAA Inspector. According the mechanic, the throttle cable was found to have pulled free of the hole/nut that secured the throttle cable to the throttle arm on the carburetor. No another anomalies were noted to exist any other airplane systems.
Factual narrative
On May 27, 2005, about 1135 eastern daylight time, a Hamilton Stoddard Glasair II S experimental amateur-built airplane, N401KY, registered to and operated by a private individual, as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, crashed in the vicinity of the Naked Lady Ranch Airport, Palm City, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The airline transport-rated pilot received minor injuries, and the airplane was destroyed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
According to the pilot, the takeoff was normal until just after rotation, when he felt a loss of power during the takeoff/initial climb. At an altitude of about 30 feet AGL, he said he saw that the engine rpm had dropped from 2270 rpm to about 1800 rpm, and he immediately concentrated on maintaining airspeed, which had dropped to about 60 to 65 mph. According to the pilot, all he could do was to maintain a wings-level attitude just above stall speed and fly the airplane into the trees.
Postcrash examination of the accident airplane was performed by an FAA licensed airframe and powerplant mechanic, under the supervision of an FAA Inspector. According the mechanic, the throttle cable was found to have pulled free of the hole/nut that secured the throttle cable to the throttle arm on the carburetor. No other anomalies were noted to exist in any other airplane systems.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N401KY
- Reported as
- Hamilton Stoddard Glassair II S
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 2083
- Airframe hours
- 250
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D1A, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Thomas M. Niebauer
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 1, 2004 · 15 hours before
- Departed
- 64FA · Palm City, FL
- Destination
- 64FA
- Airport
- 64FA · Naked Lady Ranch, runway 36, 3,300 × 120 ft, grass/turf
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
- 59
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1
- Last flight review
- January 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 15,000 total · 120 in this make and model · 10,000 as pilot in command · 2 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 70° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 3,400 ft broken
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.01 inHg
- Observed at
- SUA
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.