NTSB Factual Report

On October 11, 2007, approximately 1550 mountain daylight time, a Diamond DA 20-C1, N465US, experienced a collapse of the nose gear during an off-field landing near Santaquin, Utah. The student pilot, who was the sole occupant, was not injured, but the airplane, which was being operated by Diamond Flight Center, sustained substantial damage to its forward lower fuselage structure. The 14 CFR Part 91 solo instructional flight, which departed Spanish Fork Airport, Spanish Fork, Utah, about 20 minutes prior to the accident, was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan had been filed. The ELT was activated by the accident sequence.

According to the student pilot, he was performing a series of slow-flight and stall maneuvers. At the completion of a slow flight sequence, shortly after he had added engine power in order to increase the airplane's airspeed, the engine suddenly quit. He attempted to get the engine to restart, but his attempts were unsuccessful. He therefore executed a forced landing in a nearby open field, but during the landing roll, the nose gear was torn loose from the airframe structure due to the rough/uneven terrain covered with clumps of high vegetation.

A post-accident field inspection of the engine did not reveal any malfunction or anomaly that would have contributed to a loss of power, and it was determined that the airplane had about 17 gallons of fuel on board at the time of the power loss. It was also determined that during the sequence of maneuvers, the pilot had activated the low speed fuel pump setting as directed in Diamond DA 20-C1 Flight Manual section 7.10.6. The engine was then removed from the aircraft and shipped to Teledyne Continental Motors, in Mobile, Alabama, where it underwent a test run series and inspection process that was monitored by the Federal Aviation Administration. Prior to the first test run (with a production test club propeller), the engine underwent an external examination, followed by a borescope inspection of all cylinders, and a fuel injection nozzle flow test. In addition, the engine's fuel system was flushed using an electric boost pump, and the fuel measured at the injector nozzles was filtered in order to trap any possible contamination. No contamination or pre-run anomalies were detected.

During the first test cell run, the engine started on the first attempt, without hesitation or stumbling. It was then run at various power setting, including six different times at the full power position. During one of the full power runs, the engine was held at that setting for a period of five minutes. Throughout the test series, the engine accelerated and decelerated normally without any stumbling, hesitation, or rough running.

A second test cell run was completed with a composite flight propeller mounted on the engine. This run sequence was similar to the first run, including running the engine at full power for five minutes, and checking for smooth acceleration and deceleration. No anomalies were noted.

The engine underwent three additional test cell runs, each with an Engine Data Acquisition System (EDAS) connected to it in order to gather further specific data. Two of the runs were done with a composite flight propeller mounted to the engine, and one was done with a production test club propeller mounted to the engine. No anomalies or malfunctions were noted during these three additional test cell runs.

During the entire test run sequence the engine ran normally and did not reveal any abnormalities or anomalies that would have precluded it from running normally or producing maximum rated horsepower.

NTSB Probable Cause

A total loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. Factors include rough/uneven vegetation-covered terrain at the location where the pilot executed his emergency forced landing.