Cincinnati, OH, USA
N27838
Piper J4A
Shortly after takeoff, while the airplane was climbing through an estimated 300 feet, the engine lost power. The pilot saw he had terrain obstructions straight ahead and to the right, and jet traffic on the ground to the left. He attempted to land between parallel runways, but approaching the touchdown area, saw there was unsuitable terrain in the form of bogs and ditches. The pilot then continued to turn another 90-120 degrees to the left. The airplane "ran out of airspeed," and the left wheel caught the side of the runway. The left main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane flipped over. This was the first flight after an annual inspection. During the inspection, the carburetor was replaced, and the carburetor float had also been changed. Post-accident examination revealed that the carburetor float was out of adjustment.
On March 28, 2002, about 1500 eastern standard time, a Piper J4A, N27838, was substantially damaged during a forced landing, shortly after takeoff from Cincinnati Municipal-Lunken Field, Cincinnati, Ohio. The certificated private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and no flight plan was on file for the local flight. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. According to the pilot, the airplane's annual inspection had just been completed, and included the replacement of the carburetor. The pilot taxied the airplane from the maintenance facility back to his hangar area. He completed an engine run-up, then shut the airplane down and had the main tank filled with 100-octane fuel. He also conducted a pre-flight inspection, and checked the fuel. The pilot then re-started the engine, taxied to taxiway Charlie, and performed another engine run-up. He was subsequently cleared for takeoff from runway 21R. During the takeoff roll, all indications were normal, as was the initial climb. Over the departure end of runway 21R, at an estimated 300 feet, the engine "totally quit." Due to terrain obstructions ahead and to the right, and jet traffic on the ground to the left, the pilot made an immediate decision to turn back to the left, toward the grassy area between runways 21R and 21L. Approaching the ground, the terrain "appeared worse than I hoped (bogs, ditches)," so he turned the airplane another 90-120 degrees. As the airplane was approaching the touchdown area, its airspeed was 40 mph, and it was in a 20-degree angle of bank. At touchdown, the airplane "ran out of airspeed," and the left main landing gear tire caught the side of the runway. The airplane flipped over, and came to rest within 100 feet of the touchdown point. According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, during the annual inspection, the carburetor was replaced, and the carburetor float had also been changed. Post-accident examination revealed that the left main landing gear was collapsed, and carburetor float was out of adjustment.
The maintenance technician's failure to properly adjust the carburetor float. Factors were the unsuitable terrain.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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