Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Pawling, New York 12564
Tuesady, March 7, 2000 12:10 EST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

Twenty minutes after takeoff, and at a cruise altitude of 3,500 feet msl, the airplane's engine began to surge. The pilot attempted to identify the problem. He switched the magnetos on and off, and observed no change. He applied carburetor heat, but the engine ran even rougher so he selected carburetor heat off. After 5 minutes, the pilot cycled the fuel selector; simultaneously he experienced a further drop in engine power. Unable to make an airport, the pilot maneuvered the airplane to land in an open field. On final, the airplane struck trees short of the pilot's intended touchdown point, and then impacted the ground. A FAA Inspector stated that he rotated the propeller and obtained good compression. He added that the airplane was placard for auto-gas only, and that it was equipped with new magnetos, wires, and plugs. He also stated that the fuel inside the fuel tank smelled 'rancid.'

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

Loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 3/7/2000
Event Day of the Week Tuesday
Time of Event 1210
Event Time Zone Eastern Standard Time
Event City PAWLING
Event State NEW YORK
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 12564
Event Date Year 2000
Event Date Month 3
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 Unknown
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1145 Eastern Standard Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 262
Weather Observation Facility ID SWF
Elevation of weather observation facility 460
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 26
Time Zone of the weather observation EST
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height 15000
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 0
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Unknown
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling Broken
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) 0
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) 0
Visibility (Statute Miles) 20
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 12
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) -4
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 240
Variable Wind Indicator Unknown
Wind Speed (knots) 10
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 Minor
On Ground, Fatal Injuries 0
On Ground, Minor Injuries 0
On Ground, Serious Injuries 0
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor 1
Injury Total None 1
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All 1
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 31
NTSB Notification Source --
NTSB Notification Date Mar 7 2000 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 1400
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information IMAGE
Date of most recent change to record Dec 12 2000 1:30PM
User who most recently changed record dbo
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N474HH
NTSB Number NYC00LA091
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 Aeronca
Aircraft Model 7AC
Aircraft Series Identifier 7AC
Aircraft Serial Number 3419
Certified Max Gross Weight 1220
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 Oct 15 1999 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 38
Airframe Hours 2254
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site Unknown
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name PHILIP VANHOUTEN
Aircraft Owner Street Address 29 DONNA LN E
Aircraft Owner City WALLKEILL
Aircraft Owner State NY
Aircraft Owner Country
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 12589
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 No
Departure Airport Code 4B8
Departure City PAINVILLE
Departure State CT
Departure Country
Departure Time 1130
Departure Time Zone EST
Destination Same as Local Flt --
Destination Airport Code 6KN4
Destination City KOBELT
Destination State NY
Destination Country
Specific Phase of Flight Cruise
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Jan 2 2001 10:35AM
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 --