- Date
- July 30, 1983, 19:05 local (23:05 UTC)
- Place
- Johnstown, PA
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N80190Chamberlain KR-1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19830730036419A
- Case key
- 35094
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
The acft collided with the ground after takeoff. The weather was VMC and no flt plan was filed. The acft was an amateur/experimental KR-1 with a vw 2100 cc engine, maintained under a condition inspection program performed by the owner. Investigation at the scene indicated that the acft impacted several trees at a moderate rate of speed and a steep approach angle. The acft had turned about 90 degrees to the left from the takeoff heading of 230 came to rest 300 ft from initial impact. Investigation revealed that the acft carburetor had been replaced with another carburetor and the fuel line from gascolator to the carburetor made a sharp bend with a kink in the hose. The carburetor float was not of recommended size and some of the copper fuel lines from tank to carburetor hadbeen cut with a tube cutter with metal extending over the holes, which had not been cleaned out. Three of the spark plugs would not fire at 120 PSI; firing was normal when pressure was dropped to 100 PSI.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N80190
- Reported as
- Chamberlain KR-1
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 192-01-7391
- Airframe hours
- 64
- Engine
- Volkswagen 211OCC, 55 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ralph G. Ling
- Registered owner
- Harry L. Chamberlain
- Last inspection
- Unknown · July 7, 1983 · 2 hours before
- Airport
- JST · Johnstown-Cambria County, runway 23, 4,470 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 54
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,015 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 280° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JST, 1 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.