Bellanca 14-19-3 N1299R

Summary

On 30 August 2012 at about 19:00 local time, a Bellanca 14-19-3 registered N1299R was involved in an accident near Healdsburg, California, United States. 2 people were 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

30 August 2012 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Healdsburg, California, United States

Coordinates

38.6525, -122.8986

Aircraft

Bellanca 14-19-3

Registration

N1299R

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Rosa → Santa Rosa

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR12LA394

Nobody was injured.

The loss of engine power during cruise flight due to the failure of the engine-driven fuel pump as a result of unidentified debris within the vapor return jet.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that during cruise flight, the engine lost power, and he performed the emergency procedures; however, the engine would not restart. The pilot then performed a forced landing to an open field. During the landing roll, the nose gear collapsed. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the fuel pump would not pump fuel when the driveshaft was actuated. Further, during testing, the fuel pump did not produce adequate pressure without the test bench priming pump in operation. The fuel pump was removed and disassembled, and unidentified pliable debris was found in the vapor return jet. The debris was removed from the vapor return jet, and the fuel pump was reassembled. Following reinstallation on the test bench, the fuel pump was found to operate and produced pressure in excess of the manufacturer specifications. It is likely that the debris restricted the fuel flow and the engine subsequently lost power. Due to the compromise of the fuel system during the accident, the source of the debris could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.