David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Cypress, Texas 77410
Thursday, April 11, 2002 18:18 CDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot stated that he checked the oil level during the preflight inspection, the dipstick indicated 8 quarts, and he did not remove the oil filler cap to add any oil. The flight departed and had been airborne approximately 15 minutes when the pilot heard a "loud bang," a film of oil covered the windshield, and the engine lost total power. Subsequently, a forced landing was executed to a muddy field, and the airplane came to rest upright. An FAA inspector reported that there was an oil film covering the windshield, and added that the film extended aft along the fuselage. The Lycoming O-540-L3C5D engine was examined and boroscoped through two holes located on the top side of the engine crankcase. The #4 and #5 connecting rods were observed to be partially separated and the #6 connecting rod was completely separated from the crankshaft. All of the rods displayed signatures consistent with heat distress. The engine was removed from the airframe firewall, and no loose fittings or compromised oil lines were noted during the removal. The inlet and outlet lines for the oil cooler and turbocharger were pressurized with 80 psi of air, and no leaks were noted. The oil filter was removed and examined, and metal shavings were present; however, they did not completely obstruct the filter. The oil pump was removed and all of its internal components were intact; however, galling was observed on the pump's internal housing and on the gear teeth. The oil suction screen was removed and metal shavings were present; however, they did not completely obstruct the screen. The oil sump contained approximately 1 quart of oil and metal fragments. The oil filler cap was not located during the examination.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

the total loss of engine power as a result of oil starvation due to a missing oil filler cap, which resulted in a forced landing. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 4/11/2002
Event Day of the Week Thursday
Time of Event 1818
Event Time Zone Central Daylight Time
Event City Cypress
Event State TEXAS
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 77410
Event Date Year 2002
Event Date Month 4
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude --
Event Location Longitude --
Event Location Airport David Wayne Hooks Memorial
Event Location Nearest Airport ID DWH
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles --
Degrees magnetic from airport 315
Airport Elevation 152
Weather Briefing Completeness Unknown
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1751 Central Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 135
Weather Observation Facility ID DWH
Elevation of weather observation facility 152
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) --
Time Zone of the weather observation CDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 6000
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Scattered
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) 25
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 17
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 120
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 8
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29.98
Density Altitude (feet) 1319
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 1
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 12405
NTSB Notification Source FAA
NTSB Notification Date Apr 12 2002 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 730
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information DMS
Date of most recent change to record Nov 4 2002 9:07AM
User who most recently changed record NTSB\MONR
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Houston, Texas

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N9321R
NTSB Number FTW02LA119
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 Cessna
Aircraft Model TR182
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number R18200690
Certified Max Gross Weight 3100
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 Retractable
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Aug 25 2001 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 196.7
Airframe Hours 2638.9
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name Red Bird Flyers Inc.
Aircraft Owner Street Address 3511 Silverside Road Suite 105
Aircraft Owner City Wilmington
Aircraft Owner State DE
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 19810
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name William B. Schmidt
Operator Same as Owner? No
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? No
Operator Street Address 12107 Leafy Arbor Drive
Operator City Houston
Operator State TX
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 77070
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) Personal
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code DWH
Departure City Houston
Departure State TX
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1800
Departure Time Zone CDT
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code --
Destination City --
Destination State --
Destination Country --
Specific Phase of Flight Cruise
Report sent to ICAO? No
Evacuation occurred Yes
Date of most recent change to record Sep 24 2002 4:51PM
User who most recently changed record SNYG
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location --
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --