Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Pelham, Georgia 31779
Saturday, July 12, 2008 9:59 EDT
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
Approximately 2 weeks before the accident, significant unplanned maintenance was performed on the radial engine of the aerial application airplane. The activity included the removal of seven of the nine cylinders to remove fragments of piston rings, a piston skirt, and a broken governor drive gear from the engine case. Six of the removed cylinders were re-installed, and one cylinder was replaced with an overhauled cylinder and a new piston. The airplane was test flown, returned to service, and utilized for several days. On the day of the accident, one witness said that the engine was making "popping" noises before it crashed. The airplane touched down in a small clearing, but nosed over and collided with shrubs and trees. The accident site was located between the field being sprayed and the owner's airstrip. The pilot was fatally injured. Post-mortem toxicology revealed evidence of recent use of several over-the-counter, and one prescription, medications, but these medications are not typically associated with impairment. An autopsy revealed the presence of severe coronary artery disease and heart enlargement. The pilot’s physique and heart enlargement also strongly suggested that he may have suffered from obstructive sleep apnea, a condition associated with increased accident risk, but the circumstances of the accident were not consistent with impairment or incapacitation. Post accident examination of the engine revealed internal damage consistent with the engine being operated with one or more loose metallic items inside the engine case, but the damage could not be directly associated with the engine power loss. Several piston ring fragments were recovered from the engine case, but it could not be determined whether they were vestiges of previous problems, or were portions of the rings recently installed. No specific engine failure cause or mode was identified during the investigation.
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
A partial loss of engine power for undetermined reasons which led to a forced landing in unsuitable terrain.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 7/12/2008 |
| Event Day of the Week | Saturday |
| Time of Event | 959 |
| Event Time Zone | Eastern Daylight Time |
| Event City | Pelham |
| Event State | GEORGIA |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 31779 |
| Event Date Year | 2008 |
| Event Date Month | 7 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | 310754N |
| Event Location Longitude | 0840736W |
| 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 | 1 |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | -- |
| Airport Elevation | -- |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | -- |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1000 Eastern Daylight Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 90 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | MGR |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 294 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 30 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | EDT |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 8000 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | 1300 |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Scattered |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | Broken |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | -- |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | -- |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 10 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | 26 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | 22 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 350 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Wind direction could be determined |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 5 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | -- |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Not Gusting |
| Wind Gust (knots) | -- |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 30.13 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | -- |
| Intensity of Precipitation | -- |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | Fatal |
| On Ground, Fatal Injuries | -- |
| On Ground, Minor Injuries | -- |
| On Ground, Serious Injuries | -- |
| Injury Total Fatal | 1 |
| Injury Total Minor | -- |
| Injury Total None | -- |
| Injury Total Serious | -- |
| Injury Total All | 1 |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 25909 |
| NTSB Notification Source | SROC |
| NTSB Notification Date | Jul 12 2008 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | -- |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | -- |
| Date of most recent change to record | Oct 15 2009 3:40PM |
| User who most recently changed record | johb |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | Atlanta, GA |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N7395 |
| NTSB Number | NYC08LA245 |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | -- |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Part 137: Agricultural |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | Unknown |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | -- |
| Damage | Substantial |
| Aircraft Fire | Ground |
| Aircraft Explosion | None |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | GRUMMAN |
| Aircraft Model | G-164A |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | -- |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 942 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 4500 |
| Aircraft Category | Airplane |
| Aircraft Registration Class | -- |
| Aircraft is a homebuilt? | No |
| Flight Crew Seats | -- |
| Cabin Crew Seats | -- |
| Passenger Seats | -- |
| Total number of seats on the aircraft | 1 |
| Number of Engines | 1 |
| Fixed gear or retractable gear | Fixed |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | Jul 2 2008 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | -- |
| Airframe Hours | 4557 |
| ELT Installed | Unknown |
| ELT Activated | Unknown |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | No |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | Gifford Flynt Jr |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | -- |
| Aircraft Owner City | Pelham |
| Aircraft Owner State | GA |
| Aircraft Owner Country | USA |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 31779 |
| Operator is an individual? | No |
| Operator Name | Flynts Crop Dusting |
| Operator Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Is Doing Business As | -- |
| Operator Address Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Street Address | -- |
| Operator City | Pelham |
| Operator State | GA |
| Operator Country | USA |
| Operator Zip code | 31779 |
| Operator Code | GWVG |
| Owner has at least one certificate | Yes - certificate holder |
| Other Operator of large aircraft? | No |
| Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation | Agriculture |
| Operator Certificate Number | -- |
| Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not | Non-scheduled |
| Indicates Domestic or International Flight | Domestic |
| Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail | -- |
| Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) | Aerial Application |
| Second Pilot on Board | No |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No |
| Departure Airport Code | NONE |
| Departure City | Pelham |
| Departure State | GA |
| Departure Country | USA |
| Departure Time | 900 |
| Departure Time Zone | EDT |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere |
| Destination Airport Code | NONE |
| Destination City | Pelham |
| Destination State | GA |
| Destination Country | USA |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Unknown |
| Report sent to ICAO? | -- |
| Evacuation occurred | -- |
| Date of most recent change to record | Aug 21 2009 2:46PM |
| User who most recently changed record | muzd |
| Since inspection or accident | Last Inspection |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | N/A |
| Runway Length | -- |
| Runway Width | -- |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |