Bellanca 17-30A N614CJ

Summary

On 27 October 2001 at about 01:45 local time, a Bellanca 17-30A registered N614CJ, operated by David L. Williams, was involved in an accident near Clarendon, Texas, United States. 2 people were 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

27 October 2001 at 01:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Clarendon, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Clarendon Municipal Airport (E34)

Coordinates

34.8794, -100.9067

Aircraft

Bellanca 17-30A

Registration

N614CJ

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

David L. Williams

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Clarendon → Plainview

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

FTW02LA022

Nobody was injured.

the loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. Contributing factors to the accident were the dark night light conditions and the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane departed for a night cross-country flight, and while climbing through 500 feet agl, the pilot heard a popping sound, which was followed by a complete loss of engine power. The pilot turned on the fuel boost pump and attempted to restart the engine; however, he was not successful. The pilot stated that when the engine lost power the fuel selector was in the right tank position. A forced landing was then executed to an area of rough terrain south of the departure airport. The aircraft came to rest upright in a ravine. Examination of the airplane revealed the left fuel tank was empty, the right fuel tank was full, and the fuselage (header) tank contained 7 gallons of fuel. The fuel selector was found selected to the right tank position. The engine was examined and test run, and no anomalies were noted that would preclude operation of the engine. The reason for the loss of engine power was not determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.