- Date
- May 11, 2005, 19:15 local (23:15 UTC)
- Place
- Kennett Square, PA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N42RZZeidman RV-6A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 30, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA Philadelphia FSDO
- FAA report
- 20050511009559A
- Case key
- 61460
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
A fuel pump malfunction, as reported by the pilot, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.
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 homebuilt airplane was in cruise flight when it experienced a loss of engine power, after the pilot cycled the auxiliary fuel pump switch. The pilot turned toward a nearby airport, switched fuel tanks, placed the mixture control to full rich, and confirmed that the fuel pump was in the "on" position. The airplane continued to descend and the pilot performed a forced landing to a field. During the landing, the airplane struck a ditch, and flipped over. Initial examination of the engine did not reveal any pre-impact malfunctions. However, the pilot reported that subsequent troubleshooting of the electric auxiliary fuel pump revealed that it operated intermittently and restricted fuel flow to the carburetor.
Factual narrative
On May 11, 2005, about 1915 eastern daylight time, a homebuilt RV-6A, N42RZ, experienced a loss of engine power while in cruise flight, and was substantially damaged during a forced landing near Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. The certificated private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The pilot reported that on the day prior to the accident, he experienced difficulty restarting the engine and suspected a vapor lock problem. He installed a blast tube to aid the cooling of the engine fuel pump and conducted a test flight the following day. During the test flight, while the airplane was at 2,000 feet, it experienced a loss of engine power, after the pilot cycled the auxiliary fuel pump switch. The pilot turned toward a nearby airport, switched fuel tanks, placed the mixture control to full rich, and confirmed that the fuel pump was in the "on" position. The airplane continued to descend and the pilot performed a forced landing to a field. During the landing, the airplane struck a ditch, and flipped over.
Examination of the engine by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector did not reveal pre-impact malfunctions. The airplane was equipped with a facet cube-style electric auxiliary fuel pump. The pilot reported that subsequent troubleshooting of the fuel pump revealed that it operated intermittently and restricted fuel flow to the carburetor.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N42RZ
- Reported as
- Zeidman RV-6A
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 28212
- Airframe hours
- 785
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · May 1, 2005 · 5 hours before
- Departed
- N57 · Toughkenamon, PA
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
- 57
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,077 total · 575 in this make and model · 998 as pilot in command · 42 in the last 90 days · 26 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 160° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.93 inHg
- Observed at
- ILG, 12 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.