Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Umpire, Arkansas 71971
Wednesday, December 16, 1998 11:30 CST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

About 15-minutes after takeoff, the pilot of the single engine airplane felt slight vibrations and a 'noise' which became increasingly louder. The engine then lost power and the pilot maneuvered over hilly terrain toward an open field. Approaching the field and in a rapid descent, the airplane struck power lines. After striking the lines, the pilot managed to land the airplane in the field, and the nose gear collapsed structurally damaging the airplane. An examination and disassembly of the engine revealed that the crankcase was penetrated. The #5 piston was separated in the piston boss area and the skirt was shattered. The piston pin was intact and attached to a short section of the #5 connecting rod. The #5 connecting rod was found fractured in two places along its length, with the center section of rod missing. The camshaft had numerous impact marks and was found separated into three parts.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

Catastrophic engine failure due to failures of the #5 piston, #5 connecting rod, and the camshaft. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for a forced landing.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 12/16/1998
Event Day of the Week Wednesday
Time of Event 1130
Event Time Zone Central Standard Time
Event City UMPIRE
Event State ARKANSAS
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 71971
Event Date Year 1998
Event Date Month 12
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude --
Event Location Longitude --
Event Location Airport
Event Location Nearest Airport ID
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles --
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation --
Weather Briefing Completeness Not pertinent
Investigator's weather source Pilot
Time of the weather observation 0
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 0
Weather Observation Facility ID
Elevation of weather observation facility 0
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 0
Time Zone of the weather observation
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height 0
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 0
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling Broken
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) 0
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) 0
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 12
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) --
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 250
Variable Wind Indicator Unknown
Wind Speed (knots) 9
Wind Velocity Indicator Unknown
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) 0
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 30
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation Unknown
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury None
On Ground, Fatal Injuries 0
On Ground, Minor Injuries 0
On Ground, Serious Injuries 0
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None 1
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 1969
NTSB Notification Source --
NTSB Notification Date Dec 16 1998 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 1245
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information IMAGE
Date of most recent change to record Mar 10 2001 4:07AM
User who most recently changed record dbo
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N1933N
NTSB Number FTW99LA052
Missing Aircraft Indicator N
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed VFR
Flight plan Was Activated? --
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Cessna
Aircraft Model 182
Aircraft Series Identifier 182
Aircraft Serial Number 18265355
Certified Max Gross Weight 2550
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 4
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection May 1 1998 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection --
Airframe Hours --
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site Unknown
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name MANUEL INVESTMENTS INC.
Aircraft Owner Street Address 332 EAST FARREL ROAD SUITE E
Aircraft Owner City LAFAYETTE
Aircraft Owner State LA
Aircraft Owner Country
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 70508
Operator is an individual? --
Operator Name
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address
Operator City
Operator State
Operator Country
Operator Zip code
Operator Code
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? No
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation Unknown
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Ferry
Second Pilot on Board Unknown
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code M89
Departure City MENA
Departure State AR
Departure Country
Departure Time 1100
Departure Time Zone CDT
Destination Same as Local Flt --
Destination Airport Code LFT
Destination City LAFAYETTE
Destination State LA
Destination Country
Specific Phase of Flight Climb
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Mar 10 2001 4:07AM
User who most recently changed record dbo
Since inspection or accident --
Event Location Runway Number and Location 0
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --