Mcnary Fld Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Salem, Oregon 97302
Thursday, May 31, 2001 16:45 PDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

According to the first pilot, the airplane was in a level cruise flight configuration approximately 1,300 - 1,400 feet mean sea level (MSL) when the engine suddenly lost power. After confirming the engine failure, the first pilot initiated an off-airport forced landing to an open field located approximately 2 1/2 miles from Salem, OR. He stated that he intentionally stalled the airplane just before touchdown in an effort to prevent the airplane from "… flipping on it's back in the tall grass." When the airplane touched down, the main landing gear collapsed. A representative from the Portland, Oregon, Flight Standards District Office examined the wreckage and reported that there was no evidence found to indicate a mechanical malfunction or failure of the airframe, engine or associated components. At the conclusion of the inspection, the airplane's carburetor was shipped to the manufacture for further examination and testing. Representatives from Precision Aviation Products Corporation and the NTSB examined the airplane's carburetor. Flow bench testing and disassembly of the carburetor revealed no abnormalities with the carburetor

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

Loss of engine power during cruise flight for an undetermined reason. A factor in the accident was tall grass in the landing area.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 5/31/2001
Event Day of the Week Thursday
Time of Event 1645
Event Time Zone Pacific Daylight Time
Event City Salem
Event State OREGON
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 97302
Event Date Year 2001
Event Date Month 5
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude --
Event Location Longitude --
Event Location Airport MCNARY FLD
Event Location Nearest Airport ID SLE
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles 2.5
Degrees magnetic from airport 135
Airport Elevation 214
Weather Briefing Completeness Not pertinent
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1645 Pacific Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 335
Weather Observation Facility ID SLE
Elevation of weather observation facility 214
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 2
Time Zone of the weather observation PDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 32
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 12
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 360
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 7
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29.81
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury None
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None 2
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 14094
NTSB Notification Source FAA-REGIONAL OPERATIONS
NTSB Notification Date May 31 2001 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 1759
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information DMS
Date of most recent change to record Sep 30 2003 9:55AM
User who most recently changed record NTSB\MONR
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Portland, Oregon

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N1389B
NTSB Number SEA01LA109
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? No
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Luscombe
Aircraft Model 8F
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 6016
Certified Max Gross Weight 1400
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 14 2000 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 39
Airframe Hours 2566
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name Mary Ann Burwell
Aircraft Owner Street Address 4385 Battle Creek Road SE
Aircraft Owner City Salem
Aircraft Owner State OR
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 97302
Operator is an individual? No
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? --
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
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) Instructional
Second Pilot on Board Yes
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code --
Departure City Green Tree
Departure State OR
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1630
Departure Time Zone PDT
Destination Same as Local Flt --
Destination Airport Code SLE
Destination City SALEM
Destination State OR
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight Cruise
Report sent to ICAO? No
Evacuation occurred No
Date of most recent change to record Nov 30 2001 6:21PM
User who most recently changed record STAM
Since inspection or accident Last Inspection
Event Location Runway Number and Location --
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --