None Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Atlantic Ocean, --
Friday, June 22, 2012 17:05 EDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot filled the airplaneā€™s fuel tanks before departing on the over-ocean aerial observation flight. About 5.8 hours into the flight, while the pilot was returning to the departure airport, the engine began losing power. The pilot attempted to restore engine power using carburetor heat and the engine primer but was unsuccessful, so he ditched the airplane in the ocean about 21 miles from the destination airport. The airplane subsequently sank and was not recovered; therefore, no postaccident examination of the engine or airframe could be conducted. Although no information was available regarding the dew point conditions near the accident site, according to a Federal Aviation Administration carburetor icing probability chart, the temperature and dew point at the destination airport were conducive to the formation of carburetor ice at cruise/glide power settings. Postaccident fuel consumption calculations based on information published by the engine manufacturer showed that the airplane had a potential fuel endurance of between 3.8 and 7.1 hours depending on power setting, with an average endurance of 4.8 hours. The pilot estimated that the airplane contained about 5 gallons of fuel when the engine lost power. Because the airplane sank, the investigation was not able to conclusively determine the reason for the loss of engine power.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

A loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because the aircraft sank after ditching and was not recovered.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 6/22/2012
Event Day of the Week Friday
Time of Event 1705
Event Time Zone Eastern Daylight Time
Event City Atlantic Ocean
Event State ATLANTIC OCEAN
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site --
Event Date Year 2012
Event Date Month 6
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 422716N
Event Location Longitude 0695452W
Event Location Airport None
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 1653 Eastern Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 270
Weather Observation Facility ID BVY
Elevation of weather observation facility 107
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 32
Time Zone of the weather observation EDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 6500
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) 33
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 19
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 290
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 3
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29.67
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report METAR KBVY 222053Z 29003KT 10SM SCT065 SCT090 33/1
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) 31317
NTSB Notification Source FAA New England ROC
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record May 16 2013 6:14PM
User who most recently changed record gots
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N40985
NTSB Number ERA12LA410
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 PIPER
Aircraft Model J5A
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 51217
Certified Max Gross Weight 1450
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 3
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Oct 1 2011 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection --
Airframe Hours 450
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type Unknown
Aircraft Owner Name Edward P. Bulger
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City Newburyport
Aircraft Owner State MA
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 01950
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name Edward P. Bulger
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City Newburyport
Operator State MA
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 01950
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) Aerial Observation
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code BVY
Departure City Beverly
Departure State MA
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1100
Departure Time Zone EDT
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code BVY
Destination City Beverly
Destination State MA
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Jan 31 2013 7:19AM
User who most recently changed record moah-i
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 --