- Date
- February 2, 2008, 12:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Mukilteo, WA
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N8794VBellanca 17-30A
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR pattern final: Loss of engine power (total)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 24, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20080202009989A
- Case key
- 67456
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
Loss of engine power while on final approach for undetermined reasons. Contributing to the accident was a power line.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
While the pilot was on short-final for a touch-and-go landing, the airplane's engine lost all power. Because he was at such a low altitude, he did not have time to go through a complete restart procedure, so after switching fuel tanks, he aligned the airplane to land on a paved road that was under his approach path. While attempting to land on that road, the airplane clipped a power line and descended into the surface of the road. An inspection of the engine, fuel system, and air induction system did not reveal any system or component anomaly that would have prevented the engine from producing rated horsepower. Both the fuel tank that was selected prior to the power loss, and the fuel tank that was selected after the power loss contained sufficient fuel to maintain operation of the engine. Fuel was also found in the fuel manifold valve. The reason for the loss of power was not determined.
Factual narrative
On February 2, 2008, about 1230 Pacific standard time, a Bellanca 17-30A, N8794V, collided with a power line during an attempted forced landing at Snohomish County Airport (Paine Field), Mukilteo, Washington. The commercial pilot, who was the sole occupant of the airplane, received serious injuries, and the airplane, which was owned and operated by the pilot, sustained substantial damage. The local 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal pleasure flight, which departed the same airport about 15 minutes prior to the accident, was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan had been filed. There was no report of an ELT activation.
According to the pilot, the airplane's engine lost all power while he was on short-final for a touch-and-go landing. Because he was at such a low altitude, he did not have time to go through a complete restart procedure, so after switching fuel tanks, he aligned the airplane to land on a paved road that was under his approach path. While attempting to land on that road, the airplane clipped a power line near the edge of the road. After hitting the power line, the airplane rolled to a steep angle of bank, and descended into the surface of the road.
The engine, fuel system, and air induction system underwent a post-accident teardown inspection. That inspection did not reveal any system or component anomaly that would have prevented the engine from producing rated horsepower. In addition, both the fuel tank that was selected prior to the power loss, and the fuel tank that was selected after the power loss contained sufficient fuel to maintain operation of the engine. Fuel was also found in the fuel manifold valve, and the use of water detection paste determined that there was no water present in the valve.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8794V
- Reported as
- Bellanca 17-30A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 30320
- Airframe hours
- 3,155
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-K1B, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Phillip D. Foshee, Jr.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 1, 2007
- Departed
- KPAE · Mukilteo, WA
- Destination
- KPAE
- Airport
- KPAE · Paine Field, runway 34L, 9,010 × 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
- 51
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 532 total · 127 in this make and model · 418 as pilot in command · 3 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 20° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 37 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.55 inHg
- Observed at
- KPAE, 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.
Other investigations on N8794V · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.