Zenair ZODIAC CH601 N61PG

Summary

On 27 April 2019 at about 19:00 local time, a Zenair ZODIAC CH601 registered N61PG was involved in an accident near Angier, North Carolina, 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

27 April 2019 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Angier, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Fuquay/Angier Field (NC78)

Coordinates

35.3925, -78.7067

Aircraft

Zenair ZODIAC CH601

Registration

N61PG

Category

Airplane

Year built

1999

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Carthage → Fuquay/Angier

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA19LA159

1 person had minor injuries.

A partial loss of engine power due to partial interruption of the fuel supply for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

About 10 nautical miles from the destination during a cross-country flight, the airplane's engine began to run rough, cut in and out, and surge. The pilot checked the header fuel tank level and noted that it was nearly full, and he activated the electrically driven fuel pump, but the engine issues continued. The airplane continued to lose altitude and the engine continued to run rough; about 1,000 ft above the ground and about two nautical miles from the destination airport, the pilot decided to reduce engine power to idle and complete a precautionary landing in a field. During the landing roll, the airplane impacted a dirt pile and nosed over, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and wings. Fuel was found in the bowls of both carburetors and in both wing tanks and the header tank. Examination of the engine found no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation, and when the engine was test run from an external fuel source using the engine-driven fuel pump, it started and produced power at multiple power settings. Given the presence of fuel and the lack of anomalies found during the postaccident engine test run, it is possible that the fuel supply to the engine was partially interrupted, which resulted in the engine continuing to run rough to the extent that maintaining altitude was not possible; however, the reason for the interruption of the fuel supply could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.