Lien ZODIAC 601 XL N9881T

Summary

On 29 August 2008 at about 19:30 local time, a Lien ZODIAC 601 XL registered N9881T, operated by Kenneth L Lien, was involved in an accident near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, 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

29 August 2008 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, United States

Nearest airport

Coeur d'Alene Air Terminal (COE)

Coordinates

47.7736, -116.8206

Aircraft

Lien ZODIAC 601 XL

Registration

N9881T

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Kenneth L Lien

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Coeur d'Alene → Coeur d'Alene

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA08LA190

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control after the engine experienced a loss of power. Contributing to the accident was the mixture control arm separating from the fuel metering valve shaft.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

As the airplane departed on its maiden flight, witnesses reported hearing the engine "cut out" then start again before completely losing power. The airplane was subsequently observed in "a tight spiral" with its wings "pointing straight up and down" before impacting terrain and sliding into the side of a school building. The airplane came to rest in an inverted position. Fuel was detected at the accident site and there was no post crash fire. A Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness inspector reported that the carburetor's mixture control lever had separated from its mixture shaft, and that the carburetor's metering valve shaft appeared to have been slightly bent and grooved for some time.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.