Taylorcraft BC12-D N39971

Summary

On 6 November 2004 at about 23:34 local time, a Taylorcraft BC12-D registered N39971 was involved in an accident near Wasta, South Dakota, 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

6 November 2004 at 23:34

Classification

Accident

Location

Wasta, South Dakota, United States

Coordinates

44.1050, -102.9381

Aircraft

Taylorcraft BC12-D

Registration

N39971

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wasta → Wasta

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

CHI05LA023

1 person died.

The pilot inadvertently pulled the fuel shut off valve resulting in fuel starvation and a subsequent loss of engine power. The pilot also failed to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in the airplane stalling.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane impacted terrain after suffereing a loss of engine power followed by a loss of control. The student pilot was returning to land at his farm field when the accident occurred. A witness reported seeing the airplane's wing "wobble" when it was at an altitude of about 300 feet above the ground prior to it descending to impact. He stated he was in a vehicle at the time and was unable to tell if the engine was operating. The accident occurred at sunset and the airplane was not equipped with any cockpit lighting. Post accident examination of the airplane revealed it impacted the terrain in a nose down, left wing low attitude. One of the wooded propeller blades was shattered and the other was intact. The mixture control was in and the pushpull type fuel shutoff valve was pulled to the off position. The fuel shutoff valve was bent upward and formed around the instrument panel. The carburetor heat control was pushed in. Airworthiness Directive (AD) 51-09-03 applied to the accident airplane. The AD stated that a safety device must be installed on the fuel shutoff valve to prevent inadvertent operation of the valve while in flight. The safety device was installed; however, it was bent so that it was not covering the fuel shutoff valve. No discrepancies were noted during the engine teardown that would have prevented the engine from producing power.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.