- Date
- March 26, 2010, 15:50 local (22:50 UTC)
- Place
- Frazier Park, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N142BPMorrison Joseph Q2
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Loss of engine power (partial)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 1, 2010
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- Case key
- 75587
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
A partial loss of engine power likely due to the failure of the oil pump.
Findings · 2
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
The pilot was cruising at 8,200 feet mean sea level in his experimental category airplane when he heard a sudden change of sound from the engine and noticed that his oil pressure dropped to zero. He executed an emergency landing on a paved county road. The landing gear wheels of the airplane were located on the tips of the lower wings, 16.4 feet apart. During the landing roll the right wing tip landing gear hit soft dirt and gravel, and the airplane spun to the right. Upon examination of the airplane the pilot stated that his engine oil level was full and there was no indication of an oil leak. He suspected that the oil pump failed on the experimental category engine.
Factual narrative
The pilot was cruising at 8,200 feet mean sea level (msl) in his experimental category airplane, when he heard a sudden change of sound from the engine and noticed his oil pressure drop to zero. He executed an emergency landing on a paved county road. The landing gear wheels of the airplane were located on the tips of the lower wings, 16.4 feet apart. During the landing roll the right wing tip landing gear hit soft dirt and gravel, and the airplane spun to the right. Upon examination of the airplane the pilot stated that his engine oil level was full and there was no indication of an oil leak. He suspected that the oil pump failed on the experimental category engine.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N142BP
- Reported as
- Morrison Joseph Q2
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 2609
- Airframe hours
- 305
- Engine
- Revmaster 2100, 80 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Van Vleet Richard A
- Registered owner
- Van Vleet Richard A
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · April 11, 2009
- Departed
- KMHV · Mojave, CA
- Destination
- KOXR · Oxnard, CA
- Airport
- KMHV · Mojave Airport
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
- 68
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2
- Last flight review
- April 1, 2009
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,092 total · 200 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 17 knots, gusting 24
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.09 inHg
- Observed at
- KWJF, 50 nm away
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 8, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 543 KB in all.