# NTSB SEA08LA162: Sport Flight Talon XP, N1856P, Inverness, FL, July 18, 2008 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 18, 2008, 10:16 local (14:16 UTC) - Place: Inverness, FL - Coordinates: 28.806388, -82.317779 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=28.8064&lon=-82.3178&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Initial climb: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 1 serious, 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report September 26, 2008 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Rotax Safety and Flying Club, Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 68464 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=SEA08LA162 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/68464/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA08LA162 ## Probable cause The lower rod bearing failed due to corrosion. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Maintenance](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02062000): Personnel issues › Task performance · Owner/builder (probable cause); cases with it: [Sport Flight TALON XP, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02062000/cases.md?model=05902PC), [All aircraft, 143 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02062000/cases.md) - [Object/animal/substance: tree(s)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022020): Environmental issues › Physical environment · Not specified; cases with it: [Sport Flight TALON XP, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022020/cases.md?model=05902PC), [All aircraft, 933 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022020/cases.md) - [Engine (reciprocating): recip engine power section](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01058520): Aircraft › Aircraft power plant · Failure (probable cause); cases with it: [Sport Flight TALON XP, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01058520/cases.md?model=05902PC), [All aircraft, 233 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01058520/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Initial climb: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) (defining event); cases with it: [Sport Flight TALON XP, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md?model=05902PC), [All aircraft, 3,820 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md) - [Emergency descent: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470); cases with it: [Sport Flight TALON XP, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md?model=05902PC), [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md) ## Analysis The flight instructor and student pilot were departing on a local instructional flight. During the initial climb, the engine lost power and the airplane impacted trees short of the runway. Post accident examination showed that the lower rod bearing had failed due to corrosion. The failed bearing then impacted the crankcase causing a crack, and subsequent loss of compression. The manufacturer's records indicate that the engine was manufactured in 1994 and sold to the original owner in 1995. The pilot had purchased the engine less than a year prior to the accident and it was sold as "rebuilt," with the work purported to have been accomplished in 2007. However, there was no supporting documentation available. The engine manufacturers representative indicated that the engine was not maintained/serviced in accordance with the manufacturer's guidelines, which in part call for the replacement of the crankshaft every 5 years. There was no evidence that the crankshaft had been replaced since the date of engine manufacture. ## Factual narrative On July 18, 2008, at 1016 Eastern daylight time, an experimental light sport airplane (E-LSA) Sport Flight Talon XP, N1856P, lost engine power during takeoff from the Inverness Airport, Inverness, Florida. The sport pilot flight instructor was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The instructor was not injured and the student sustained serious injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the local area instructional flight. According to the instructor, the airplane had been converted from an ultralight trainer to an E-LSA in January of 2008. Approximately 1 minute into the accident flight at 600 feet above ground level (agl), the engine sputtered. The engine completely lost power as the instructor attempted to return the airplane to the runway. The airplane impacted trees prior to reaching the runway. The engine was examined by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector and a representative of Rotax engines. The examination revealed that the lower rod bearing was corroded and had failed. Near the area of the failure, there was a crack identified in the crankcase. The engine was manufactured in 1994 and sold in 1995 to the first user. The engine had been purchased by the owner as "rebuilt" in November of 2007, however, no supporting documentation was available for the engine. The engine manufacturer also specifies that the crankshaft should be replaced every 5 years. There was no evidence that the crankshaft had been replaced since the date of manufacture. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1856P](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N1856P-2018-01-11), registration cancelled 2018-01-11, S/N XP067, built 2005 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Sport Flight Talon XP - Registry model: [Sport Flight TALON XP](https://openairdocs.org/model/sport-flight-talon-xp) (registry code 0590370) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Rotax 582SER](https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-582ser) (registry code 55556, 2 cycle) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: XP067 - Airframe hours: 139.5 - Engines: Rotax 582 66 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Operator: James J. Wolfe - Registered owner: James J. Wolfe - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Special light-sport (Special); Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, January 1, 2008, 10 hours before - Departed: X40, Inverness, FL - Destination: X40 - Airport: X40, Inverness, runway 19, 3,762 × 60 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Flight instructor; age 57; injuries: none; sport pilot, flight instructor; airplane ratings: single-engine land, single-engine sea; medical: sport pilot; last flight review September 1, 2007; seat: rear; flight hours: 4,500 total, 50 in this make and model, 20 in the last 90 days, 20 in the last 30 days - Student pilot; injuries: serious; seat: front; flight hours: 1 total, 1 in this make and model, 1 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 280° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 79 °F, dew point 72 °F - Altimeter: 30.02 inHg - Observed at: OCF, 22 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20080718855119A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080718855119A), Jul 18, 2008: Sptflt TALONXP, Inverness, FL, Destroyed. (-23) On July 18, 2008, at 1015 a talon xp sport N1856P, registered to [privacy data omitted] departed Inverness, FL airport identifier X40. [privacy data… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.