Crystal Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55429
Saturday, June 4, 2011 18:37 CDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

According to an air traffic controller, shortly after takeoff, approximately 50 to 100 feet above ground level, the pilot contacted the tower controller and stated "...we're gonna," and the transmission ended. The tower controller said that when the airplane reached the departure end of the runway, the airplane entered a left bank and impacted terrain. The airplane came to rest inverted, adjacent to the runway. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the engine's fuel system contained brownish fluid, consistent with old and dirty automotive fuel. The pilot stated that he did not service the airplane with fuel prior to takeoff and that the airplane hadn’t been flown in at least 6 months. A postaccident examination revealed that the fuel system hoses were cracked and degraded, and one fuel line was improperly modified. Further, a conditional inspection of the airplane had not been completed in the previous 3 years. The engine was test run postaccident with fresh automotive fuel, and it ran normally for about 5 minutes at various power settings. Based on the tower controller's description of the accident sequence, it is likely the airplane entered an aerodynamic stall shortly after takeoff. It is also likely that the improper servicing and maintenance of the fuel system could have contributed to degraded engine performance.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during takeoff, which resulted in an inadvertent stall. Contributing to the accident was the degraded engine performance due to the improper servicing and maintenance of the fuel system.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 6/4/2011
Event Day of the Week Saturday
Time of Event 1837
Event Time Zone Central Daylight Time
Event City Minneapolis
Event State MINNESOTA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 55429
Event Date Year 2011
Event Date Month 6
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 450343N
Event Location Longitude 0932114W
Event Location Airport Crystal Airport
Event Location Nearest Airport ID MIC
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport On Airport
Distance from airport in statute miles 0
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 869
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1835 Central Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 0
Weather Observation Facility ID MIC
Elevation of weather observation facility 869
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 0
Time Zone of the weather observation CDT
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) 26
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 9
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 300
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 13
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 30.1
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 --
Injury Total None --
Injury Total Serious 2
Injury Total All 2
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 29236
NTSB Notification Source FAA Ops Center
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Dec 14 2011 3:04PM
User who most recently changed record johb
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N242RM
NTSB Number CEN11LA374
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
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 MALKIN ROY K
Aircraft Model SEAREY
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 1MK369C
Certified Max Gross Weight 1370
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? Yes
Flight Crew Seats 2
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 Conditional
Date of Last Inspection May 3 2008 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection --
Airframe Hours 94
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type C91
Aircraft Owner Name MALKIN ROY K
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City MINNEAPOLIS
Aircraft Owner State MN
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 55447-4822
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name MALKIN ROY K
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City MINNEAPOLIS
Operator State MN
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 55447-4822
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 Yes
Departure Airport Code MIC
Departure City Minneapolis
Departure State MN
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1835
Departure Time Zone CDT
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code MIC
Destination City Minneapolis
Destination State MN
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Nov 2 2011 9:46AM
User who most recently changed record saua
Since inspection or accident Last Inspection
Event Location Runway Number and Location 32R
Runway Length 3263
Runway Width 75
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --