Preliminary NTSB report on Crystal Village plane crash released

NTSB Identification: ERA09LA357
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, June 19, 2009 in Chipley, FL
Aircraft: LUSCOMBE 8, registration: N41915
Injuries: 1 Serious.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On June 19, 2009, about 1941 central daylight time, a Luscombe 8A, N41915, was substantially damaged following a loss of engine power and a subsequent forced landing in Chipley, Florida. The student pilot/owner was seriously injured. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight, and no flight plan was filed.

According to information provided by eyewitnesses and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector who responded to the accident, the pilot had performed two or three takeoffs from the Crystal Village Airport (2FL0), Chipley, Florida over the course of the afternoon. After the last takeoff, the engine appeared to lose power, and the pilot attempted a forced landing approximately 1/4 mile northeast of the airport. The airplane contacted the ground on its landing gear, but then bounced, and nosed over inverted when it re-contacted the ground. The fuselage aft of the firewall sustained longitudinal crush damage, and the vertical stabilizer and outboard leading edge of the left wing sustained crush damage.

According to the FAA inspector, the spinner was crushed, but the propeller and engine appeared completely undamaged. In addition, the propeller did not exhibit any rotational scoring or scuffing. The cap from the left fuel tank was found under the left wing, and there was only a "light smell of automotive gasoline" at the site. The pilot resided at 2FL0, and also had a hangar there. Friends of the pilot transported the airplane to the pilot's hangar, where it was secured, still in an inverted position.

2FL0 had a single turf runway that was 3,500 feet long and 75 feet wide. The runway orientation was noted as 3/21.

FAA records indicated that the pilot held a student pilot certificate that was issued in November 2007. His most recent FAA third-class medical certificate was issued in May 2004. The airplane was first registered to the pilot in July 2008. It was manufactured in 1941, and was equipped with a Continental A65 engine.

The automated weather observation at an airport located 15 miles south of the accident site, at about the time of the accident, reported winds from 270 degrees at 9 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear skies, temperature 32 degrees C, dew point 26 degrees C, and an altimeter setting of 29.89 inches of mercury.