Schuetz Miniplane DSA-1 N11991

Summary

On 12 August 2001 at about 16:00 local time, a Schuetz Miniplane DSA-1 registered N11991 was involved in an accident near Michigan City, Indiana, 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

12 August 2001 at 16:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Michigan City, Indiana, United States

Coordinates

41.7094, -86.8690

Aircraft

Schuetz Miniplane DSA-1

Registration

N11991

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

South Haven → Michigan City

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI01LA275

1 person was seriously injured.

Aircraft control not being maintained by the pilot. Contributing factors to the accident were the pilot maneuvering at a low airspeed, the encountered stall/spin, and the recovery from the spin at a low altitude, which resulted in altitude/clearance not being maintained from the trees. Additional factors to the accident were the low fuel quantity, which resulted in fuel starvation and the momentary loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, while in a "slow" turning maneuver the engine quit running, the airplane stalled and entered a spin. The pilot stated that he encountered the stall/spin at 1,150 feet msl. The pilot recovered at approximately 50 to 60 feet above the ground but was unable to climb before impacting a small grove of trees. The pilot reported that, "Before I realized the engine had quit I had lost to much airspeed. The plane stalled and went into a spin." The pilot stated that the engine began to run after the recovery from the spin. The pilot stated that the airplane's fuel quantity, as of the last departure, was 8 gallons. The fuel burn rate for a Continental O-200 engine is reported as 7.5 gallons/hour. The duration of the flight was approximately 0.5 hour. During a post-accident inspection no anomalies were found with the airplane or its engine that could be associated with any pre-impact condition.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.