Allen Jan A CHALLENGER II N269MM

Summary

On 22 May 2013 at about 16:50 local time, a Allen Jan A CHALLENGER II registered N269MM was involved in an accident near Greeley, Colorado, 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

22 May 2013 at 16:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Greeley, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Greeley-Weld County (GXY)

Coordinates

40.4036, -104.6417

Aircraft

Allen Jan A CHALLENGER II

Registration

N269MM

Category

Airplane

Year built

2011

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Greeley → Erie

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN13LA298

Nobody was injured.

The loss of engine power due to the engine seizure, which resulted from damage caused by the ingestion of carburetor ice into the engine intake ports.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, after starting the engine, he taxied the experimental, amateur-built airplane to the runway at idle power. Shortly after takeoff, the engine lost total power, and the pilot subsequently performed a downwind, off-airport landing. During the landing roll, the airplane impacted terrain, which resulted in the collapse of the nose landing gear, a complete separation of the left main landing gear, and substantial damage to the lower fuselage. The airplane came to rest upright, and the two occupants exited the cockpit unassisted. A postaccident examination revealed that the two-cylinder, two-stroke carbureted engine was seized and could not rotate because of a mechanical restriction. The piston rings were found damaged, and evidence of vertical scoring was found on the pistons and cylinder walls; the scoring appeared to have originated near the cylinder's intake port. The weather conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to the formation of serious icing at glide power. It is likely that the carburetor accumulated ice while the pilot taxied the airplane to the runway at idle power and that the engine ingested that ice sometime after takeoff, which resulted in mechanical damage to the engine and its subsequent loss of power. The airplane was not equipped with provisions for carburetor heat nor was it required to be.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.