SEA02FA083

History of flight

On May 16, 2002, approximately 1727 mountain daylight time, a Grumman G-44, N700BL, registered to and operated by the pilot as a 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, experienced a loss of engine power shortly after takeoff and subsequently collided with a residence located about one mile north of the Boise Air Terminal, Boise, Idaho. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and a visual flight rules flight plan was filed. The aircraft was substantially damaged and the two airline transport pilots received serious injuries. One person was at the residence and was not injured.

During a telephone interview and subsequent written statement, the pilot stated that he had recently purchased this aircraft and was flying it from Kenai, Alaska to Florida. On the day of the accident (third day of the trip), the flight originated in Bellingham, Washington, about 1200 Pacific daylight time and arrived in Boise approximately 1440. The pilot stated that 80.4 gallons of fuel was added to top off the fuel tanks. No oil was added. The pilot reported that after a pre-flight and engine start, he noted that "the right engine had a tendency to stall out below 1000 rpm, a condition that developed during the trip down from Alaska." A normal takeoff on runway 28 right was accomplished. Shortly after liftoff, the tower controller informed the pilot that one of the landing gear had not fully retracted. The pilot reported that he utilized the hydraulic hand pump and the gear fully retracted. The pilot stated that the aircraft was about 200 to 300 feet agl, when he then felt the aircraft yaw and noted that the rpm on the right engine was down from 2600 rpm (normal) to 1800 rpm. The pilot informed the tower controller that he was returning (for landing) and began a right downwind turn. The pilot reported that at this point he concentrated on maintaining 95 mph airspeed and did not attempt to feather the propeller or secure the right engine. The aircraft was unable to maintain altitude and continued to descend into a residential area. The aircraft collided with trees and power lines before coming to rest on the roof of a single story residence located at 2120 S. Hilton.

The pilot rated passenger reported that the pre-flight, start, and taxi to the runway were normal. Power was applied and 2,600 rpm was noted on both engines with 25-30 inches of manifold pressure. Both fuel pressures were in the normal range. After liftoff, the aircraft accelerated to 100 mph and a 500 foot/minute climb was attained. The flaps and gear were retracted, however, the gear did not fully retract and the pilot pumped the manual hydraulic handle a couple of times and the gear fully retracted. The passenger stated that just as the green "up" light illuminated and the gear was visually checked, the aircraft yawed to the right. The passenger noted that the rpm gage for the right engine was about 1,800 rpm, while the left engine was still indicating 2,600 rpm. The pilot leveled the aircraft at about 3,000 feet msl (about 130 feet agl) and stated that he was going to return to the airport. The tower controller cleared the aircraft for either a left or right downwind. The passenger stated that the pilot turned right and that during the turn, the airspeed started to bleed off down to 80 mph. The passenger pointed this out to the pilot which he then lowered the nose in an effort to maintain 95 mph, which is the minimum single engine airspeed. The passenger stated that initially the sink rate was high, but then shallowed out when the airspeed increased. The passenger thought that they were going to be able to level out just above the trees when he looked at the rpm gage for the right engine and noted that it was just above idle position. The aircraft then collided with the first tree, subsequently colliding with additional trees and power lines before coming to rest on the roof of a residence. The passenger stated that the pilot turned off the fuel and electricity to limit a fire hazard.

Personnel information

The pilot holds an Airline Transport Pilot certificate and is rated in single and multi-engine land and sea aircraft. The pilot was also rated in rotorcraft. The pilot reported a total flight time in all aircraft of 10,250 hours with 8,200 hours as pilot-in-command. A total flight time of 28 hours were reported in the accident aircraft make & model, with 21 hours as pilot-in-command. The pilot received his type rating in multi-engine sea aircraft on April 18, 2002, in a Grumman G-44, located in Florida. The pilot reported that all of the multi-engine sea flight time has been in the Grumman G-44.

The pilot rated passenger holds an Airline Transport Pilot certificate and is rated in single and multi-engine land aircraft. The passenger reported a total flight time in all aircraft of 9,000 hours, with 3,000 hours as pilot-in-command. The passenger reported a total flight time of 15 hours in the accident aircraft make & model, with zero hours as pilot-in-command.

Aircraft information

Maintenance records and documents found in the aircraft were reviewed. The pilot reported that he had just purchased this aircraft and had fixed several maintenance discrepancies prior to the flight from Alaska. The pilot maintained a log of daily activity dated May 4, 2002, to the day of the accident documenting each days activities. The overhauled propellers were picked-up from the overhaul shop on May 5 and installed on the aircraft May 6, 2002. The propeller logbook indicated that the sign-off for the annual inspection certifying that the propellers had been inspected in accordance with an annual inspection and determined to be in an airworthy condition was on May 8, 2002. Both engine logbooks also indicated an annual inspection sign-off on May 8, 2002. The airframe logbook indicated an annual inspection sign-off on May 9, 2002.

Additional discrepancies noted in the daily log indicated that on May 6, the batteries were found low and the engines would not start. The batteries were removed and recharged. On May 7, the engines were started but it was found that the tachometer for the left engine (number 1) was inoperative. Also the wheel bearings were making noise and it was found that the right inboard wheel bearings were dry and rusted. On May 8, the aircraft was jacked up onto a cradle and the landing gear was extended and retracted using the hand pump. On May 9, new wheel bearings were installed, and the engines were started in preparation for a flight. During the run-up a "bad mag check" was experienced and the flight was cancelled. The spark plugs were cleaned and gapped, along with installing new tires. On May 10, an exhaust leak was fixed, along with the door latch. The first flight after the annual inspection signoff was on this day. After the one hour flight, the daily log indicated "came back with #1 tach, engine mixture #2, #1 engine barrel seal, possible att gyro problem." A second 1.2 hour flight was flown later in the day. The daily log indicated "came back with flap indicator, #1 tach, tail wheel strut, left elevator fabric." The final entry for this day indicated, "Fixed everything and ran it up at 2230. Checks good." On May 11, the daily log indicated that, "tach problem is back - no fly." The entry indicated that most of the day was used trying to fix the problem with no success. A decision was made to rewire the tach, which would have to be done in Anchorage. On May 12, the daily log entry indicated that a person was found to build the wire harness. On May 13, the new wire harness was installed. A 1.5 hour flight was made. The entry indicated, "no problems." On May 14, a .5 hour flight was flown with no problems noted. At 1255, the flight departed from Kenai, Alaska, to Yakutat, Alaska, continuing on to Sitka, Alaska. A total of 5.4 hours of flight time was logged. No indication of