Holst Lawrence E VP-1 N770VP

Summary

On 25 March 2011 at about 21:38 local time, a Holst Lawrence E VP-1 registered N770VP, operated by Holst Lawrence E, was involved in an accident near Calhoun, Georgia, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 March 2011 at 21:38

Classification

Accident

Location

Calhoun, Georgia, United States

Coordinates

34.4553, -84.9389

Aircraft

Holst Lawrence E VP-1

Registration

N770VP

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Holst Lawrence E

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Calhoun → Calhoun

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA11LA213

1 person had minor injuries.

A partial loss of engine power during initial climb due to an over-lean carburetor setting. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's improper adjustment of the engine's carburetor during construction.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that this was the airplane's first flight after construction. He said that he conducted a preflight inspection and engine run up, and no anomalies were noted. The cylinder head temperature was in the yellow prior to initiating the takeoff roll. At 200 feet above ground level on the initial climb, the engine experienced a partial loss of engine power, and the pilot noted that the cylinder head temperature was in the red arc. He turned the airplane to the left, looked for a forced landing area, pulled the power back and performed a forced landing to an open field. The airplane landed hard and sustained substantial damage to the airframe. The pilot stated that he followed the carburetor adjustment procedure for the main carburetor jet adjustment in accordance with the airplane's adjustment procedure manual. He said that during the adjustment he set the main jet adjustment to the lean point of the setting. After running up the engine, he re-adjusted it to a leaner point from the initial adjustment. Postaccident examination of the airframe, flight controls, engine assembly and accessories revealed no anomalies other than the carburetor adjustment.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.