North American NAVION NA-1 N8551H

Summary

On 18 May 1997 at about 13:40 local time, a North American NAVION NA-1 registered N8551H was involved in an accident near Morristown, Arizona, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

18 May 1997 at 13:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Morristown, Arizona, United States

Coordinates

33.8998, -112.9001

Aircraft

North American NAVION NA-1

Registration

N8551H

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wickenburg → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX97LA183

Nobody was injured.

failure to replace an old and abraded oil feedline hose which led to its rupture and the in-flight loss of engine oil pressure. A related factor was the pilot's misjudgment of distance-to-go versus altitude remaining during the subsequent forced landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The engine developed an oil leak resulting in smoke in the cockpit and decaying oil pressure. The private pilot shut off the engine and attempted to land on a local desert airstrip. The airplane landed approximately 50 feet short of the airstrip and contacted several large bushes during the landing rollout. The postaccident investigation disclosed that the oil supply hose from the oil cooler to the engine had ruptured. The hose appeared to be old and heat deteriorated, but was not replaced in conjunction with a recent engine change.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.