Luscombe 8F N26324

Summary

On 5 November 2006 at about 17:00 local time, a Luscombe 8F registered N26324 was involved in an accident near Wellsville, Kansas, United States. One person was 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

5 November 2006 at 17:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Wellsville, Kansas, United States

Coordinates

38.5422, -95.2550

Aircraft

Luscombe 8F

Registration

N26324

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Ottawa → Gardner

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN07CA019

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power due to the ingestion of the number 2 intake valve into its cylinder. Contributing factors included the pilot allowing the airspeed and altitude to drop, making a safe landing not possible.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot said the engine made a loud "bang" approximately 10 minutes into the flight and lost power. The airplane was vibrating, so the pilot secured the engine and shut off the fuel supply. The pilot declared an emergency, then attempted to land in a bean field. The airplane had "insufficient speed and altitude" to clear a tree line and struck the trees. Engine disassembly revealed the number 2 intake valve had been completely "swallowed" into the cylinder. The engine had accrued 1,700.49 hours since overhaul. The rated time-between-overhaul for the Continental C-90-12F engine is 1,800 hours.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.