Jacobs RV-6A N238RV

Summary

On 24 March 2012 at about 22:30 local time, a Jacobs RV-6A registered N238RV was involved in an accident near Bow, Washington, 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

24 March 2012 at 22:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Bow, Washington, United States

Coordinates

48.5469, -122.4092

Aircraft

Jacobs RV-6A

Registration

N238RV

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Burlington → Bellingham

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR12LA146

Nobody was injured.

The total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the pilot’s mismanagement of the fuel supply.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot performed two touch-and-go landings then departed to his destination airport. As the airplane climbed through 2,300 feet mean sea level, the pilot heard a loud "clunk." The engine experienced a total loss of power, and the airplane began to descend. The pilot maneuvered the airplane to a field in an effort to perform an off-airport, emergency landing. Prior to touchdown, the landing gear collided with a barbed wire fence and the airplane nosed over. During the wreckage recovery, the right fuel tank was found empty and the left tank contained about 22 gallons of aviation fuel. The pilot reported that he believed that the fuel selector was positioned on the left tank at the time of the loss of power. He did not attempt to restart the engine following the loss of power due to the airplane's low altitude. At the time of the airframe examination, the fuel selector was found in the off position. A postaccident examination of the engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that the fuel selector was in fact positioned to the empty fuel tank and the reason for the loss of engine power was due to fuel starvation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.