Sandy Creek Airpark Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Panama City, Florida 32404
Wednesday, July 11, 2012 10:53 CDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The airplane was parked outdoors for an extended period of time. The pilot/owner spent 2 days alternately draining water-contaminated fuel and test running the airplane’s engine several times. The pilot stated that he drained one fuel tank completely because the fuel appeared to be “milky” and serviced that tank with 10 gallons of fuel, but he later amended his statement and said he drained both tanks completely before he serviced them with "a combination of Jerry cans and a friend's pickup-mounted fuel tank." He then departed. The airplane experienced a total loss of engine power immediately after takeoff. The pilot attempted to return to the airport but landed in a retention pond short of the runway. The pilot reported that he performed a “shallow” turn to return to the airport, but a witness described “an abrupt/steep left-hand turn” followed by a ''stall" and descent to water contact. No preimpact mechanical anomalies were noted that would have precluded normal operation. After the accident, the engine was placed in a test cell where it started immediately, accelerated smoothly, and ran continuously without interruption. The manufacturer and the FAA have published letters, bulletins, and advisories that provided guidance to prevent accidents due to water contamination of the fuel system. It is likely that the pilot did not drain all the water-contaminated fuel from the airplane before departure, which led to the loss of engine power after takeoff.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

A total loss of engine power due to water contamination of the fuel, the pilot/owner's inadequate preflight inspection of his airplane, and his failure to maintain airplane control after the engine failure.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 7/11/2012
Event Day of the Week Wednesday
Time of Event 1053
Event Time Zone Central Daylight Time
Event City Panama City
Event State FLORIDA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 32404
Event Date Year 2012
Event Date Month 7
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 300605N
Event Location Longitude 0852826W
Event Location Airport Sandy Creek Airpark
Event Location Nearest Airport ID 75FL
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 13
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1555 Coordinated Universal Time? Same as GMT
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 225
Weather Observation Facility ID KPAM
Elevation of weather observation facility 17
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 5
Time Zone of the weather observation UTC
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height 18000
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 13000
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Few
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) 30
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 25
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 160
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) 30.05
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report METAR KPAM 111555Z AUTO 16007KT 10SM FEW130 SCT150
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 1
Injury Total All 1
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 31649
NTSB Notification Source FAA Southern ROC
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Jul 9 2013 4:09PM
User who most recently changed record kenj
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N2561V
NTSB Number ERA12LA440
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 170
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 18066
Certified Max Gross Weight 2200
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats 2
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats 2
Total number of seats on the aircraft 4
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Feb 11 2011 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 33
Airframe Hours 1541
ELT Installed Unknown
ELT Activated Unknown
ELT Aided Location of Event Site Unknown
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name MEINEL JEFF H
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City Panama City
Aircraft Owner State FL
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 32404
Operator is an individual? Yes
Operator Name MEINEL JEFF H
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City Panama City
Operator State FL
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 32404
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) Ferry
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event Yes
Departure Airport Code 75FL
Departure City Panama City
Departure State FL
Departure Country USA
Departure Time --
Departure Time Zone CDT
Destination Same as Local Flt --
Destination Airport Code --
Destination City Andalusia
Destination State AL
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Jul 9 2013 4:10PM
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 --