ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 358909
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| Date: | Saturday 30 April 2022 |
| Time: | 13:00 |
| Type: |  North American AT-6D Texan |
| Owner/operator: | Cavanaugh Flight Museum |
| Registration: | N29947 |
| MSN: | 42-85697A |
| Year of manufacture: | 1944 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Gillespie County Airport (T82), Fredericksburg, TX -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Gillespie County Airport, TX (T82) |
| Gillespie County Airport, TX (T82) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On April 30, 2022, about 1300 central daylight time, a North American AT-6D airplane, N29947, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at Gillespie County Airport (T82), Fredericksburg, Texas. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
The pilot stated that he completed a preflight inspection and engine run-up with no anomalies noted. During the initial climb after takeoff, immediately after retracting the landing gear, the pilot noticed white smoke from the engine cowling. A few seconds later, the engine “coughed loudly” and lost total power. The pilot landed the airplane on the remaining runway; however, the airplane exited the runway and collided with a runway light. resulting in substantial damage to the left wing and left aileron.
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors completed an examination of the airplane and assisted the owner’s mechanics with removing the engine for transport. They discovered that the No. 1 cylinder was cracked around its circumference. They did not observe any other anomalies during the examination.
Postaccident engine examination confirmed that the No. 1 cylinder head fractured near the rear spark plug on the exhaust side. The mechanic noted it was likely that during the accident takeoff, the cylinder head separated due to pre-ignition or detonation stresses, which no longer allowed the push rods to operate the valves and resulted in a loss of engine power.
A recurring FAA airworthiness directive (AD) was applicable for this airplane and related to visual inspections to prevent cylinder head cracking. The AD was completed 164.7 flight hours before the accident and was due to be completed again in 85.3 hours.
Probable Cause: A total loss of engine power due to a failure of the No. 1 cylinder.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=105032
Location
Images:
Photo: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 14-Mar-2024 19:33 | Captain Adam | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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