NTSB Factual Report

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On May 28, 2005, about 1305 eastern daylight time, an American Aviation Corporation AA-1A, N9346L, was substantially damaged after colliding with trees during an attempted forced landing, near Levittown, Pennsylvania. The certificated commercial pilot was fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which departed the Northeast Philadelphia Airport (PNE), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania about 1026 hours. No flight plan had been filed for the commercial aerial observation flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

The flight was being operated as a traffic reporting flight that patrolled primarily in the vicinity of the Garden State Parkway and Interstate 95, as far north as Teterboro, New Jersey.

According to the bureau chief of the traffic reporting communications center, all communications with the accident flight were normal until the flight was near the Brick Township, New Jersey, exit of the Garden State Parkway and the pilot advised that he could not proceed further north along the parkway. He further stated that he had already used 1 hour and 40 minutes worth of fuel and would need to land and refuel to continue. The bureau chief stated that in his experience, it was unusual for a pilot to be that low on fuel at that location, and advised the pilot "to go home."

At approximately 1220 hours, the bureau chief received another transmission from the pilot reporting on some traffic congestion, and advised that he would re-contact him on the ground.

No radar data was available for the accident flight, however; air traffic control communication data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revealed that at 1259:59 the pilot contacted the air traffic control tower at PNE, and advised that he was inbound to the airport from the northeast at 2,000 feet msl. At 1303:26 the pilot declared an emergency, reported an engine failure, and 17 seconds later advised that he was going to "put it down in the field."

A witness, who observed the final moments of the flight, stated that the airplane's engine "just stopped." The airplane was then seen to travel across the Delaware River, westbound. At approximately 1305 hours, the airplane was seen by another witness to be paralleling a road in Levittown at low altitude with the propeller rotating at low rpm. The propeller then stopped rotating. The airplane then banked to the right and struck trees in a nose down, inverted attitude.

PILOT INFORMATION

The pilot was found in the right front seat secured by the restraint system. Index cards with flight maneuvers, procedures, and study questions were found nearby, along with a portable video player.

A review of FAA records revealed that he held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single engine land, and instrument airplane. His most recent FAA first-class medical certificate was issued on April 9, 2004. According to his pilot logbook, he had accrued 552 total hours of flight experience, and as recently as the day before the accident, had been receiving flight instruction in order to obtain a flight instructors certificate.

AIRPLANE INFORMATION

The airplane was manufactured in 1971, and its most recent annual inspection was completed on April 26, 2005. At the time of the inspection, the airplane had accrued 12,842.8 total hours of operation.

METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION

A weather observation taken about 11 minutes prior to the accident, at PNE, recorded the winds as 190 degrees at 12 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear skies below 12,000 feet, temperature 79 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point 46 degrees Fahrenheit, and an altimeter setting of 29.80 inches of mercury.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

The main wreckage came to rest in a wooded area located between an elementary school playing field and a row of houses. The wreckage was located at 40 degrees, 08.35 minutes north latitude, 74 degrees, 51.40 minutes west longitude.

The wreckage was contained in an approximate, 25-foot area, with no ground scarring noted. The right wing was separated from the fuselage, and suspended in a tree 22 feet east of the main wreckage.

All the major components of the airplane were accounted for at the accident site. The main wreckage was orientated on a heading of 076 degrees magnetic, was inverted, and displayed varying degrees of impact damage. A tear was visible on the right side of the fuselage from the trailing edge of the wing root attachment area, to the tail. The right wing had separated from the fuselage at the wing root. The right horizontal stabilizer was located 16 feet north of the main wreckage, and the vertical stabilizer was located 9 feet east southeast. The left wing flap was in the flaps up position, and the right wing flap had separated from the wing. All flight control surfaces displayed differing degrees of damage. Though separated from the vertical and right horizontal stabilizer, both the rudder panel and the right elevator panel remained attached to the fuselage by their inboard pivot mounts. The left elevator remained attached to its respective stabilizer.

Flight control continuity was confirmed from the left aileron to the cabin, the right aileron to the right wing root, and from the elevator and rudder panels to the cabin.

Examination of the cockpit revealed that the throttle control was in the full throttle position, the mixture control was in the idle cutoff position, and that both the magneto switch and the master switch were in the off position. The fuel selector was set to off.

Examination of the propeller revealed that the propeller assembly had remained attached to the engine. One blade was straight and exhibited no chordwise scratching or leading edge gouging. The other blade, which was in contact with the ground when the airplane was found, was curled in a rearward direction for most of its length with an approximately 4 inch long section, towards the tip, bent forward.

No smell of fuel was noted at the accident site. The fuel tanks were compromised, however; no evidence of fuel staining or spillage was present and no fuel could be recovered for testing.

Powerplant and Fuel System Examination

No evidence of preimpact damage or malfunction of the engine was observed. Minimal impact damage was exhibited on portions of the ignition harness, crankcase, engine baffling, and valve covers. Continuity of the intake system, exhaust system, valve train, and crankshaft was confirmed. All spark plugs were removed for inspection, their electrodes were intact, and were gray in color. All four cylinders were examined internally with a lighted borescope, and no anomalies were observed. The crankshaft was rotated through an accessory drive, and thumb compression was obtained on all four cylinders. The valve covers were removed, and oil was noted in all cylinders. The oil filter, oil suction screen, and oil pressure screens were examined, and no contamination or debris was observed. Both magnetos were rotated, and spark was produced at all terminal leads.

The carburetor fuel inlet screen was intact, showed no discoloration or debris. The main fuel nozzle, floats, venturi, and throttle plate were undamaged. A trace amount of water was found in the float bowl, which was otherwise clean, free of sediment, debris, or fuel.

The body of the engine driven fuel pump was mostly intact, with the exception of a portion of the inlet fuel fitting. When actuated by hand, a pumping action was observed. The internal valves were intact; however, no fuel was found in the pump chambers.

The electric fuel pump contained approximately one tablespoon of fuel and its screen was free of debris.

The fuel selector valve was intact and in the "off" position. When tested with air pressure, no blockages or anomalies were noted. Fuel was observed in the left fuel line which had broken off at the wing root and which led to the fuel selector valve. The right fuel line was devoid of fuel.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

An Autopsy was performed on the pilot by the Office of the Coroner, Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Toxicological testing of the pilot was conducted at the FAA Bioaeronautical Sciences Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Airplane Performance

According to the Owners Manual, "endurance hours" could range from a low of 3.2 hours to a high of 4.7 hours depending on power setting, however; no data was available for operations below 2,500 feet. It also stated that "cruise performance fuel consumption" figures were based on the use of a recommended leaning technique, and that "fuel consumption can be reduced significantly, especially at high altitudes" by leaning the mixture in cruise flight.

The airplane's actual performance would vary also from "standard," due to variations in atmospheric conditions, engine and propeller condition, mixture leaning technique, and other variables associated with the particular performance item.

The airplane was equipped with an optional McCauley "7157 cruise propeller" that originally was 71 inches in diameter. During examination of the propeller and the airplane's maintenance records it was discovered, that the propeller had been cut down to 70 inches in diameter and that no record could be found of the tachometer being periodically checked for accuracy.

Further examination of the airframe also revealed, that no wheel pants were installed, it's paint was weathered, and rough to the touch and cracked in multiple locations.

The operator's pilots would usually fly at 2,000 feet msl, and would lean the mixture "to do traffic," and return to the airport between 4,500 and 6,500 to conserve fuel.

The pilot of the accident flight however, "usually flew at 1,500 feet," and "was always asking about doing maneuvers." Another pilot who had flown with the accident pilot on two separate occasions also stated that the pilot asked him if, "I can do maneuvers, steep turns, chandelles, whatever" and a traffic spotter stated that during one flight, he was asked, "do I want to do spins?"

Corrective Actions

As a result of this accident, the aircraft operator and it's successor, changed aircraft types and established a set of operating procedures. These procedures required their pilots to assure the airplane had full fuel before each flight and established a maximum duration of flight between refuelings. Also included was a requirement that the airplane be controlled from the left seat during traffic flights, and restricted maneuvering in the airplane to those maneuvers necessary for traffic reporting and normal operation. Additionally, a prohibition on the use of items such as magazines, video players, mobile phones, and other distracting items in the cockpit was also included.

WRECKAGE RELEASE

The wreckage was released to a representative of the owner's insurance company on June 22, 2005.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's improper in-flight planning which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. A factor in the accident was the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during the forced landing, resulting in an inadvertent stall and uncontrolled descent into trees.