Extra Flugzeugbau EA-300 N102EX

Summary

On 11 September 2010 at about 16:30 local time, a Extra Flugzeugbau EA-300 registered N102EX was involved in an accident near Sierra Vista, Arizona, 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

11 September 2010 at 16:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Sierra Vista, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Sierra Vista Muni Airport (FHU)

Coordinates

31.5703, -110.3799

Aircraft

Extra Flugzeugbau EA-300

Registration

N102EX

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sierra Vista → Sierra Vista

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR10LA454

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power due to metal debris contamination of the inverted oil system shuttle valve, which resulted in a disruption of oil flow and subsequent oil starvation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he had flown the airplane about 6 hours with the recently overhauled engine. During the accident flight, he performed touch-and-go landings and then went to an aerobatic area to perform flight maneuvers. During the maneuvers, he noted that the oil pressure was initially 65 to 70 psi, dropped to about 40 psi, and returned to 70 psi when the airplane was in inverted flight. He then did left and right 90-degree inverted turns. As he completed a steep turn, he noticed that the oil pressure was at 0 psi. Before he could react, the engine seized and stopped. The pilot made a successful landing on a road but had to negotiate around a 45-degree left bend; as the airplane rounded the curve, a vehicle traveling in the opposite direction collided with the left wing. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the connecting rod near cylinder Nos. 5 and 6 had failed when the engine seized. Further examination found that the shuttle valve, which controlled oil flow while the airplane was in inverted flight, had a triangular shaped shard of metal wedged under the remaining steel ball. This kept the ball from moving its full travel to the shut off position, resulting in a loss of lubrication to the engine.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.