MIA07LA130

The pilot of the powered parachute observed a noticeable drop in the engine's rpm during the climb, and elected to return to the departure airport. Seconds later, the engine seized. He located a road for the forced landing. During the approach, people appeared suddenly at the intended landing area, and they did not give way. The pilot elected to turn left and fly into a tree. The aircraft impacted the tree, and then descended vertically, landing hard. Postaccident examination of the seized engine revealed all oil had leaked out from an over torqued oil filter, which was changed about 9 flight hours before the accident. The Rotax's maintenance manual instructs mechanics to "screw the oil filter on by hand until it stops at the filter house, then tighten an extra 3/4 turn."

On July 28, 2007, about 0713 eastern daylight time, a Powrachute Pegasus 912M, powered parachute, N44118, registered to Xtreme Adventures, Inc. and operated by an individual, had a loss of engine power and impacted into a tree after takeoff from Suffolk Executive Airport (SFQ), Suffolk, Virginia. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and a visual flight plan (VFR) flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The pilot received serious injuries and the aircraft incurred minor damage. The flight originated about 0700.

The pilot stated that during the climb, at 1,800 feet, he observed a 1,000 rpm drop in engine power. He elected to return to SFQ, and several seconds later the engine seized abruptly. The pilot looked for a field for the force landing. During the descent, at 300 feet, he was aligned on to a road. All of a sudden three people and a dog appeared on the road and were not moving from their position. He elected to turn left and head toward an oak tree. The aircraft impacted the tree, dropped straight down, and landed hard in the upright position.

During post recovery examination of the aircraft by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector it was reveal that the engine seized due to lack of engine oil. The oil leak was observed from the engine oil filter, which had been changed about 9 hours before the accident flight during schedule maintenance. The oil filter was examined by a Rotax Aircraft Engines representative with National Transportation Safety Board oversight. The examination revealed that the oil filter attaching thread were consistent with over torque scoring. The Rotax's maintenance manual instructs mechanics to "screw the oil filter on by hand until it stops at the filter house, then tighten an extra 3/4 turn."