# NTSB WPR13LA134: Blumer Challenger II Spec, N107BW, Peoria, AZ, February 26, 2013 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: February 26, 2013, 09:30 local (16:30 UTC) - Place: Peoria, AZ - Coordinates: 33.799999, -112.25 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.8000&lon=-112.2500&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Approach-VFR pattern base: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 19, 2014 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Western Pacific Region - Parties: FAA FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 86297 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=WPR13LA134 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/86297/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=86297 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR13LA134 ## Probable cause A cracked cooling fan housing, which led to a malfunction of the ignition system and a loss of engine power during the landing approach. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Ignition system: ignition power supply](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01057410): Aircraft › Aircraft power plant · Damaged/degraded (probable cause); cases with it: [Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01057410/cases.md?model=05676SM), [All aircraft, 13 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01057410/cases.md) - [Object/animal/substance: sign/marker](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022015): Environmental issues › Physical environment · Contributed to outcome; cases with it: [Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022015/cases.md?model=05676SM), [All aircraft, 214 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03022015/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Approach-VFR pattern base: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) (defining event); cases with it: [Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md?model=05676SM), [All aircraft, 3,820 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md) - [Landing-landing roll: Off-field or emergency landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440); cases with it: [Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440/sequence.md?model=05676SM), [All aircraft, 3,365 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440/sequence.md) - [Landing-landing roll: Collision during takeoff/land](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490); cases with it: [Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490/sequence.md?model=05676SM), [All aircraft, 1,309 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/490/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot reported that he was practicing touch-and-go landings. The airplane's engine lost power while on the base leg of the traffic pattern, and the pilot decided to land on a dirt road. He landed uneventfully, but a wing collided with a road sign during the landing roll. The airplane spun off the road into desert terrain and sustained substantial damage to the wing and fuselage. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed a cracked cooling fan housing that likely resulted in misalignment of the magnets in the ignition system, which led to an ignition failure and loss of engine power. The fan housing was not a manufacturer-supplied part. ## Factual narrative On February 26, 2013, about 0930 mountain standard time, an experimental Blumer (Quad City) Challenger II, N107BW, collided with a sign during an off field landing on a road near Peoria, Arizona. The pilot/owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The private pilot and one passenger were not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The local personal flight departed Pleasant Valley Airport in Peoria about 0910. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot reported that he was practicing touch-and-go landings. On the base leg, the engine lost power, and he decided to land on a dirt road. He landed uneventfully, but a wing collided with a road sign during the landing roll. The airplane spun off the road into desert terrain, and sustained substantial damage to the wing and fuselage. The engine was a Rotax 503, serial number 4298279. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector oversaw examination of the engine. He discovered a cracked cooling fan housing that he believed resulted in misalignment of the magnets in the ignition system, and thus an ignition failure and loss of engine power. The fan housing was not a Rotax part. No Service Difficulty Reports (SDR) were found on file with the FAA regarding the cooling fan. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N107BW](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N107BW), registered now, S/N CH20291CW0647, built 1991 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BLUMER CHALLENGER II SPEC - Registry model: [Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC](https://openairdocs.org/model/blumer-james-allen-challenger-ii-spec) (registry code 05676SM) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG](https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (registry code 99999) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: CH20291CW0647 - Year built: 1991 - Airframe hours: 1452 - Engines: ROTAX 503 52 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Blumer James Allen - Registered owner: Blumer James Allen - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, June 5, 2012 - Departed: P48, Peoria, AZ - Destination: P48, Peoria, AZ - Airport: P48, Pleasant Valley ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 62; injuries: none; private, commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; last flight review June 3, 2011; seat: rear; restraint: lap only; flight hours: 2,065 total, 1,450 in this make and model, 1,800 as pilot in command, 22 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 30° at 3 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 50 °F, dew point 25 °F - Altimeter: 30.04 inHg - Observed at: KLUF ## 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 20130226003029A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130226003029A), Feb 26, 2013: Blumer James Allen CHALLENGER II SPEC, Peoria, AZ, Substantial damage. Pilot was completing a third touch and go at airport P48, and while turning downwind noted the engine RPM decreasing. Pilot turned towards the airfield, and as… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 18, 2014, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=86297. 2.2 MB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 2.1 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40419076&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - FAA Observations (item 2, .PDF, 14 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40419077&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=FAA%20Observations-Redacted.PDF 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.