Petrik QUESTAIR VENTURE N6UN

Summary

On 4 September 2002 at about 20:00 local time, a Petrik QUESTAIR VENTURE registered N6UN was involved in an accident near Crescent City, California, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

4 September 2002 at 20:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Crescent City, California, United States

Nearest airport

Jack McNamara Field Airport (CEC)

Coordinates

41.7800, -124.2364

Aircraft

Petrik QUESTAIR VENTURE

Registration

N6UN

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Crescent City → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX02LA273

1 person died.

The pilot's loss of control for undetermined reasons. A contributing factor was low ceiling.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

A flight instructor and student pilot, who were flying in another airplane, reported that the accident airplane rolled to the left and then descended straight down into the trees. The flight instructor reported hearing the pilot of the accident airplane report that he was on final approach for runway 17. The airplane impacted trees and the ground in a remote area about one mile short of the approach end of runway 17. The airplane was found inverted, wedged between trees. At 1256 PDT, the Crescent City automated weather observing station (AWOS) reported the wind 160 degrees at 8 knots, a broken ceiling at 600 feet AGL, 10 miles visibility, temperature 55 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point 50 degrees Fahrenheit and altimeter 30.06 inches of Mercury. The aircraft impacted trees about 25 feet above the ground and continued forward for about 30 feet before coming to rest inverted. The left wing was separated from the aircraft and was found in a tree about 20 feet above the main wreckage with the left aileron on the ground below the wing. The right wing was still attached to the fuselage with the aileron separated and lying below the wing. Both wings exhibited evidence of a long time fuel leak. It was not determined if there was fuel in the engine fuel lines due to the lines being broken at all major attachment points. Likewise, it was not determined if there was fuel in the wing tanks. The last recorded fuel purchase was made on July 9, 2002 for 26.83 gallons of 100LL fuel. One of the propeller blades had very little damage, while the other blade exhibited a slight aft bend.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.