Bellanca 17-30A N9996V

Summary

On 5 April 2024 at about 16:03 local time, a Bellanca 17-30A registered N9996V was involved in an accident near Galveston, Texas, 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

5 April 2024 at 16:03

Classification

Accident

Location

Galveston, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Scholes International Airport (GLS)

Coordinates

29.2653, -94.8604

Aircraft

Bellanca 17-30A

Registration

N9996V

Category

Airplane

Year built

1971

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pearland → Galveston

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN24LA152

Nobody was injured.

Maintenance personnel’s failure to properly secure the oil filter adapter when replacing the oil filter adapter gasket which resulted in the filter becoming loose, resulting in the loss of engine oil, and the subsequent total loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that while in cruise flight he briefly had smoke in the cockpit. The smoke dissipated and after being cleared to land, the engine quit suddenly, and the propeller stopped rotating. He alerted the tower and immediately retracted the landing gear and flaps and established best glide airspeed. When landing was assured, he lowered the landing gear, but the right main landing gear did not extend. The right wing struck a runway light and was substantially damaged.    Post-accident examination by the mechanic who worked on the airplane a few days prior to the accident revealed that the safety wire he cut while performing a gasket replacement on the oil filter adapter had not been removed and replaced. It is likely that because the cut safety wire was not replaced and secured when the filter adapter gasket was replaced, the filter became loose during engine operation which allowed for engine oil to leak out resulting in the subsequent loss of engine power due to oil starvation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.