ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 211925
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| Date: | Thursday 7 June 2018 |
| Time: | 11:00 |
| Type: |  Van’s RV-4 |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N7765X |
| MSN: | 3890 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2015 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 90 hours |
| Engine model: | General Motors ECOTEC L61 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Pittsburgh/Butler Regional Airport (KBTP), Butler, PA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Butler County/K. W. Scholter Field Airport, PA (BTP/KBTP) |
| Butler County/K. W. Scholter Field Airport, PA (BTP/KBTP) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Shortly after takeoff on an extended crosswind leg about 800 ft mean sea level, the engine lost total power. The private pilot continued ahead and landed the airplane in a field. During the landing, the airplane impacted a wire fence and brush, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage and wings.
During postaccident interviews, the pilot reported that this was the first flight after he had made maintenance repairs to the automobile-converted engine due to an engine failure 1 month before the accident. He stated that he installed an aftermarket engine control unit and modified the fuel delivery software, which resulted in the engine running too lean for flight and likely caused detonation and piston damage to occur. During the run-up before the accident flight, the pilot was aware that the engine was not producing power as it should. However, he decided to depart with a known engine problem, and his decision to do so led to the accident.
Probable Cause: The pilot's improper decision to fly the airplane with a known engine problem and his improper modification of the engine control unit fuel delivery software, which led to the engine running too lean and resulted in a total loss of engine power during climb.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA register: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=7765X
Location
Images:
Photo: FAA
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 07-Jun-2018 23:49 | Geno | Added |
| 07-Jun-2018 23:58 | Geno | Updated [Date] |
| 08-Jun-2018 07:29 | Iceman 29 | Updated [Time, Source, Embed code] |
| 10-Feb-2019 10:48 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Accident report, ] |
| 10-Feb-2019 12:04 | harro | Updated [Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Photo] |
| 10-Feb-2019 12:05 | harro | Updated [Phase, Embed code] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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