Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Williston, Florida 32696
Sunday, February 21, 2010 11:17 EST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot stated that he was at 2,000 feet mean sea level and planned on making a base leg entry for landing. He applied carburetor heat and reduced power. The engine lost power and the propeller started to windmill. He attempted a restart; however, the engine started momentarily and lost power again 2 to 3 seconds later. The airplane continued to descend and he turned to line up with the runway, when he observed a telephone pole. He immediately slipped the airplane to the right to avoid the pole, and the airplane collided with the ground and came to rest inverted. Examination of the crash site revealed the landing gear collided with a wire in between two telephone poles. Examination of the airframe revealed no anomalies. Examination of the fuel system revealed the fuel selector valve in the on position. The fuel tank was not ruptured and no fuel was present in the fuel tank. The fuel tank cap had a tight seal and no fuel staining was present on the airframe. No browning of any vegetation was present at the crash site. First responders reported no leakage of fuel or smell of fuel at the crash site. The fuel lines and gascolator contained 2 to 3 ounces of fuel. The carburetor was separated and no fuel was present. The fuel tank was removed and 3 gallons of water was placed in the fuel tank. No leaks were observed. The pilot stated that he had 17 gallons of fuel on board at takeoff. The engine assembly was totally disassembled and no anomalies were noted that would have prevented the engine from operating. The pilot reported on the NTSB accident report that he had 8 total flight hours in the accident airplane.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

A loss of engine power during approach due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot's fuel mismanagement.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 2/21/2010
Event Day of the Week Sunday
Time of Event 1117
Event Time Zone Eastern Standard Time
Event City Williston
Event State FLORIDA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 32696
Event Date Year 2010
Event Date Month 2
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 292120N
Event Location Longitude 0822818W
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 --
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1053 Eastern Standard Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 274
Weather Observation Facility ID GNV
Elevation of weather observation facility 147
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 22
Time Zone of the weather observation EST
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) 20
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 8
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 140
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) 30.11
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury Serious
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor 1
Injury Total None --
Injury Total Serious 1
Injury Total All 2
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 26830
NTSB Notification Source FAA Southern Region ROC
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Jun 15 2010 1:58PM
User who most recently changed record johb
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N816
NTSB Number ERA10LA151
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 COTTER
Aircraft Model STITS PLAYMATE
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 10
Certified Max Gross Weight 1500
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? Yes
Flight Crew Seats 1
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats 1
Total number of seats on the aircraft 2
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Conditional
Date of Last Inspection Oct 9 2009 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 12
Airframe Hours 12
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated Yes
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type C91
Aircraft Owner Name SEAY PHILLIP L
Aircraft Owner Street Address 16970 NE 85TH ST
Aircraft Owner City WILLISTON
Aircraft Owner State FL
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 32696-3901
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name SEAY PHILLIP L
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address 16970 NE 85TH ST
Operator City WILLISTON
Operator State FL
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 32696-3901
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? No
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 X60
Departure City Williston
Departure State FL
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1000
Departure Time Zone EST
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code X60
Destination City Williston
Destination State FL
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Apr 14 2010 1:14PM
User who most recently changed record kenj
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location N/A
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --