- Date
- June 1, 1995, 14:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Geneseo, NY
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N43705Taylorcraft BC-12
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 4, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950601048769A
- Case key
- 38976
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 pilot's inadequate preflight inspection, which failed to detect water-contaminated fuel which resulted in the loss of engine power. Also causal was the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during the forced landing, which resulted in the inadvertent stall/spin and collision with the terrain.
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 landed at a local airport, where the pilot purchased auto fuel from a vendor. Plastic containers were used to transport the fuel to the airplane. During initial climb after takeoff, the engine lost power and the pilot made a forced landing. During the landing the airplane nosed over. Examination revealed the airplane's fuel tanks all contained auto fuel, and the carburetor bowl contained water and sediment. The plastic containers used to transport the fuel also contained water and sediment.
Factual narrative
On June 1, 1995, at 1430 eastern daylight time, a Taylorcraft BC-12, N43705, was substantially damaged during a forced landing after takeoff from the Geneseo Airport, Geneseo, New York. The private pilot was seriously injured and the passenger received minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, for the personal flight originating at Geneseo. No flight plan had been filed for the flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The pilot and passenger flew from Lancaster, New York, to the Geneseo Airport (D52), the day of the accident. While at D52, the pilot purchased auto fuel from a local vendor to refuel his airplane, and used plastic containers to transport the fuel. After about 45 minutes of ground time at D52, the pilot and passenger boarded the airplane for the return trip to Lancaster.
In the NTSB Form 6120.1/2, the pilot stated that he performed a soft field takeoff at D52, and during the initial climb the engine lost power. He then observed trees and power lines at the end of the runway, and elected to attempt a landing to the left of the runway.
The pilot further stated:
...Airplane proceeded to glide normally, then at approximately 100 feet, the nose of the aircraft dropped straight down and the aircraft plunged to the ground...
In a written statement, a witness to the accident said:
...I heard an aircraft engine miss. I looked north towards the runway and saw a blue and white aircraft at about 100 feet. It's engine quit, and it turned and dived vertically to the left, hitting the ground.
A Federal Aviation Administration Airworthiness Inspector examined the wreckage at the accident site. The Inspector's report stated that the airplane's three fuel tanks contained auto fuel, and the carburetor bowl contained water and sediment. The Inspector also examined the plastic containers used to transport the auto fuel to the airplane. His report stated, "...it appears the same sediments and water drained from the carburetor bowl were found in the plastic containers..."
Aircraft
- Registration
- N43705
- Reported as
- Taylorcraft BC-12
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 7364
- Engine
- Continental A-65-8, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Bernard Chesna
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 28, 1994 · 94 hours before
- Departed
- D77
- Destination
- D77 · Lancaster, NY
- Airport
- D52 · Geneseo, runway 23, 4,695 × 90 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
- 70
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 402 total · 183 in this make and model · 402 as pilot in command · 67 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.