- Date
- June 4, 1993, 15:00 local (19:00 UTC)
- Place
- Leesport, PA
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N73SMBellanca 17-31
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 19, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930604016879A
- Case key
- 37323
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 loss of engine power for undetermined reasons, which resulted in forced landing and collision with trees.
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 airplane was on a test flight after completion of an annual inspection. At an altitude of about 600 feet the engine lost complete power after the pilot reduced power. During the forced landing, attempts to restart the engine were unsuccessful and the airplane struck trees. The FAA found approximately 25 gallons of fuel in the right wing tank and fuel saturation in the ground near the ruptured left fuel tank. The FAA successfully test ran the engine and no discrepancies were found.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N73SM
- Reported as
- Bellanca 17-31
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 75-31111
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-K1E5, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Kendell & Cary Hilton
- Registered owner
- Kendell & Cary Hilton
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 4, 1993 · 1 hours before
- Departed
- RDG
- Destination
- RDG
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
- 66
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 13,500 total · 70 in this make and model · 12,000 as pilot in command · 18 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RDG, 2 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.