Thomas VP-1 N89KD

Summary

On 8 December 2000 at about 19:45 local time, a Thomas VP-1 registered N89KD was involved in an accident near West Jordan, Utah, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 December 2000 at 19:45

Classification

Accident

Location

West Jordan, Utah, United States

Coordinates

40.5999, -111.9599

Aircraft

Thomas VP-1

Registration

N89KD

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN01LA020

1 person was seriously injured.

the lack of suitable terrain for a forced landing. Contributing factors were the total loss of engine power due to the failure of the pilot to adjust the manual propeller pitch to permit the engine to achieve sufficient rpm for sustained flight, and the subsequent fouling of the spark plugs due to the over rich fuel condition.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot said he was flight-testing the newly finished homebuilt airplane. The original plans called for a fixed pitch propeller. The pilot said that he had put a manually adjustable pitch propeller on the airplane, and he had adjusted it for cruise flight. He said that once he was airborne, the engine began "lugging" and quickly lost power. He started a right turn to crosswind, and simultaneously began to perform a forced landing. Subsequently, the airplane struck a building and some transmission wires before coming to rest. Postaccident examination of the engine by an FAA inspector revealed that the spark plugs were wet with fuel. The inspector also found heavy carbon deposits in the exhaust stack.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.