George T. Lewis Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Cedar Key, Florida 32625
Saturday, September 4, 1999 18:45 EDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot did not ensure that the fuel valve was on nor did he activate the electric fuel boost pump before takeoff. The low fuel warning light illuminated on takeoff roll with sufficient runway remaining to abort the takeoff. The pilot elected to continue the takeoff. The airplane experienced a loss of engine power and a forced landing was initiated. The airplane collided with trees, and crashed while maneuvering to a forced landing area. The engine was removed and mounted in a test stand. The engine started immediately and sustained normal operations. The mechanical fuel pump functioned normally in all operating conditions. The low fuel warning light did not flicker or illuminate when using any combination of the mechanical or electric fuel pump. With the fuel valve turned to the off position the engine would run for about 2.4 minutes at full power before losing power.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to follow the checklist (turn Fuel Valve-On, and activate electric fuel boost pump) and the pilot's decision to continue flight with a known unairworthy condition (illumination of low fuel pressure warning light on takeoff roll) with sufficient runway remaining to abort the takeoff. This resulted in a subsequent loss of engine power on initial takeoff climb, forced landing, and in-flight collision with trees and terrain.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 9/4/1999
Event Day of the Week Saturday
Time of Event 1845
Event Time Zone Eastern Daylight Time
Event City CEDAR KEY
Event State FLORIDA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 32625
Event Date Year 1999
Event Date Month 9
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude --
Event Location Longitude --
Event Location Airport GEORGE T. LEWIS AIRPORT
Event Location Nearest Airport ID CDK
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport On Airport
Distance from airport in statute miles --
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 7
Weather Briefing Completeness Unknown
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1855 Eastern Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 0
Weather Observation Facility ID GNV
Elevation of weather observation facility 7
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 0
Time Zone of the weather observation EDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height 0
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 0
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
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) 23
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 18
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 310
Variable Wind Indicator Unknown
Wind Speed (knots) 4
Wind Velocity Indicator Unknown
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) 0
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29
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) 10157
NTSB Notification Source --
NTSB Notification Date Sep 4 1999 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 2022
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information IMAGE
Date of most recent change to record Jul 17 2001 8:35AM
User who most recently changed record MONR
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N196DA
NTSB Number MIA99FA246
Missing Aircraft Indicator N
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? --
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Diamond Aircraft Industries
Aircraft Model DA20-A1
Aircraft Series Identifier DA20-A1
Aircraft Serial Number 10056
Certified Max Gross Weight 1603
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 2
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Aug 23 1999 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 26
Airframe Hours 2229
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated Yes
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name SKY KING AVIATION
Aircraft Owner Street Address BLDG 1 AIRPORT BLVD
Aircraft Owner City STATESBORO
Aircraft Owner State FL
Aircraft Owner Country
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 30461
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) Personal
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event Yes
Departure Airport Code CDK
Departure City
Departure State
Departure Country
Departure Time 1843
Departure Time Zone EDT
Destination Same as Local Flt --
Destination Airport Code TBR
Destination City STATESBORO
Destination State FL
Destination Country
Specific Phase of Flight Climb
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Dec 9 2002 11:00AM
User who most recently changed record dbo
Since inspection or accident --
Event Location Runway Number and Location 23
Runway Length 2335
Runway Width 100
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --