Fontana, CA, USA
N9YC
McClanahan Stits Playmate SA-11
The engine lost power during cruise and the airplane entered into a spin to ground impact in a nose down attitude. Multiple witnesses heard the engine sputter and lose power, and then lost sight of the airplane as it crested a mountain. Other witnesses located nearby reported that they saw the airplane enter a spin while turning sharply and then impact the ground in a nose down attitude. A post impact fire consumed the airplane. The accident pilot, who was also the airplane owner, purchased the airplane about a year prior to the accident. He removed the engine and took it to a repair facility for inspection after experiencing overheating problems. The repair facility produced documents showing that they performed an inspection, disassembly, and repair of the engine in March 2002. A review of the airframe and engine logbooks revealed that the engine recorded as installed in the airplane was not what investigators found installed on the airplane. By serial number, the engine found on the airplane was the one that the repair facility had worked on. Beyond the work performed by the repair facility, the history of the engine is unknown. During the post accident engine examination, investigators noted signatures consistent with oil starvation. The connecting rods were rust colored and the crankshaft journals were thermally damaged and blue in color, with a bronze/copper color transfer. The forward main bearing halves were also coated with a bronze/copper coloration, and were not aligned with their respective oil galley passageways. Since the engine repair in March 2002, the engine was estimated to have accrued 54.33 hours of total time. According to the Federal Aviation Regulations Title 14 CFR 43.1, and 91.409, the maintenance and inspection requirements of these regulations do not apply to aircraft certificated in the experimental category.
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 27, 2003, at 1655 Pacific daylight time, an experimental amateur-built McClanahan Stits Playboy SA-11, N9YC, experienced a loss of engine power and crashed near the junction of Interstate 215 and Interstate 15 in Fontana, California. The private pilot operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The airplane was destroyed in the post-impact fire, and the pilot and one passenger were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area flight that departed Flabob Airport, Riverside/Rubidoux, California, at an unknown time. The flight was destined for the Riverside Municipal Airport. The wreckage was located at 34 degrees 11.230 minutes north latitude and 117 degrees 25.776 minutes west longitude, at an elevation of 2,020 feet. A witness at a campground at Glen Helen Park saw the airplane prior to the accident. He stated that the airplane was flying over the campground, and when it flew overhead, he heard the engine quit. The airplane appeared to be in level flight traveling in a southerly direction. He estimated the airplane's altitude at 4,000 feet above the ground. Before the airplane crossed over a hill, he heard the engine sputter, but not restart. The witness lost sight of the airplane after it crossed over a hill. Two witnesses in the area stated that just prior to the airplane impacting the ground, they did not hear any noise coming from the engine. Another witness reported that she was in the Glen Helen Park area when she heard a "sputtering" engine. She looked up and saw the accident airplane, and indicated that the engine was running rough and was flying southbound. The witness heard the engine stop, and saw the airplane make a hard right turn in a westbound direction. After the airplane cleared the mountain it made another hard right turn and "spiraled down out of sight." Another witness traveling on Interstate 15 to Las Vegas, Nevada, stated that he saw the airplane out of his right window. He stated that the airplane was spiraling down, and then crashed. He stopped his car to try and assist the people inside the airplane. Prior to reaching the airplane there was an explosion. When he reached the airplane he stated that the fire was high with intense heat and progressing rapidly towards the cockpit. A majority of the witnesses observed the airplane spinning in a nose-down clockwise rotation. PERSONNEL INFORMATION A review of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airman records revealed the pilot held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single engine land rating. The pilot held a third-class medical certificate issued on September 5, 2003. It had the limitation that the pilot must wear lenses glasses for distant vision, and possess glasses for near vision. An examination of the pilot's logbook indicated he had accumulated a total flight time of 288.92 hours. He logged 44.69 hours in the last 90 days, and 9.05 in the last 30 days. He had about 54.33 hours in this make and model. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The airplane was a 1973 experimental single engine McClanahan Stits Playboy SA-11, serial number 162. A review of the airplane's logbooks revealed a total airframe time of 554.73 hours at the last condition inspection, which was completed on May 6, 2003. On June 7, 2003, a new exhaust system had been installed. A flight check was conducted with no anomalies noted. The history of the engine as derived from Airframe and Engine logbooks was as follows: -Both the airframe and engine logbooks recorded the original 1973 installed engine was a Franklin Sport 4, serial number 4-1023. -An engine logbook entry dated March 4, 1985, reported that the engine was disassembled, cleaned, inspected, and reassembled in accordance with the Franklin overhaul manual. -An airframe logbook entry dated October 20, 1997, reported that the engine had been replaced with a "Franklin Sport of same model. Serial #4-109." According to the airframe logbook, in 1998 the airplane, with the new engine (serial #4-109), flew about 11.9 hours. There were no recorded flights for 1999. In 2001, the airplane flew about 1.78 hours. A condition inspection was recorded on January 19, 2001. In a letter dated December 31, 2002, the pilot reported that he had purchased the airplane in 2001. At the time of delivery, the accident pilot flew with the previous owner of the airplane for familiarization purposes. The accident pilot noted that during the flight the oil temperature was high, "but he [previous owner] ignored it." During the next 3 months, the accident pilot noted that the engine oil would over heat "within 15 minutes of flight." It was brought to his attention that the previous owner had installed a rebuilt engine on the accident airplane (it should be noted that this rebuilt engine was not recorded in the engine logbook), and could not get it to idle. At that point, this rebuilt engine was removed and taken to S.C. Modifications, Corona, California, for further inspection. The previous owner indicated that at the time of sale, "that the engine came with no previous logs." He further reported that an engine had been installed on the airplane, but it was not represented as a 'major overhaul.' The previous owner attributed the high temperatures to the "rings seating in." According to paperwork from S.C. Modifications, the accident pilot delivered the Franklin Sport 4 B engine, serial number B947, to their facility on March 12, 2002. He informed S.C. Modifications that 18 hours had been placed on the engine since it had been rebuilt. The pilot reported that the engine was running hot and using "excessive oil (1 quart of oil in 1 hour 15 minutes.)" The repair facility disassembled the engine and found the following discrepancies: -All cylinder liners were worn beyond serviceable limits, which allowed for ring end gaps to be excessive (approximately 0.095 - 0.105). The cylinder liners measured 0.040 over new size. "This was determined to be the cause for overheating and excessive oil consumption." All valve guides were worn beyond serviceable limits. At that point maintenance personnel decided to completely teardown the engine for a more detailed inspection. Maintenance personnel found the following: -The connecting rod and main case bearings, as well as the camshaft case bearings were worn past limits. -The crankcase halves had "excessive amounts of carbon and sludge build up for the amount of time represented after the overhaul." -There was a 2-inch crack in the carburetor induction plenum chamber. Maintenance personnel indicated that the crack would allow air to bypass the carburetor and add to the excessive overheating of the engine while in flight. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION First responders to the accident site noted that the airplane came to rest in a creek bed (Lytle Creek) about 30 feet from a cement support structure of a bridge on Interstate 15. The creek bed ran along a northwest to southwest direction and was rocky with shrubbery. The airplane came to rest upright and intact on a southeasterly heading. The wreckage was recovered to Eastman Aircraft, Corona, for further examination. MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION The San Bernardino County Coroner conducted an autopsy on the pilot on September 30, 2003. The Bioaeronautical Sciences Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, performed a toxicological analysis from samples obtained during the autopsy. The results of the analysis of the specimens were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, volatiles, and tested drugs. TESTS AND RESEARCH National Transporation Safety Board investigators examined the airframe and engine at Eastman Aircraft on October 3, 2003. Investigators verified that the engine installed on the accident airplane was a Franklin Sport 4 B engine, serial number B947, which corresponded to paperwork from S.C. Modifications. Investigators noted extensive fire and impact damage to the engine. The top spark plugs were removed. The number 1 spark plug had a dark coloration and was oil fouled, the numbers 2 and 3 spark plugs were a light gray in color, and the number 4 spark plug had a dark gray coloration. The rocker box covers were removed and no visual mechanical deformities were noted. Investigators unsuccessfully attempted to manually rotate the engine via the crankshaft. Investigators removed the cylinders and noted that the connecting rod arms were a rust color. The crankcase was disassembled and the crankshaft main bearings exhibited bronze/copper coloration. The crankshaft flange displayed torsional deformation. The crankshaft bearing journals showed signs of bluing associated with high temperatures, as well as, a bronze/copper color transfer from the main bearing halves. The forward main bearing halves were deformed with bronze/copper color noted. Investigators also noted that the bearing halves were not aligned with the oil galley passageways. The camshaft had fractured in three locations. The accessory section sustained fire and impact damage. The left magneto rotor had been thermally damaged and manual rotation could not be conducted. The right magneto was functionally tested, with spark obtained at two of the four posts. The other two leads were damaged at the post. The carburetor floats (metal) were hydro-dynamically collapsed. The throttle linkage arm was manipulated with a corresponding movement of the accelerator pump. The engine driven fuel pump sustained thermal damage. The electrical boost pump remained attached to at the firewall and also sustained thermal damage. Investigators did not find the fuel pump screen. Metal shavings were found in the oil sump. The vacuum pump sustained thermal damage, and the carbon rotors were shattered. There was no rotational scoring noted on the walls of the vacuum pump. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION The Safety Board investigator released the wreckage to the owner's representative on November 21, 2003. Sections in the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) applicable to maintenance requirements for experimental aircraft state in part: According to FAR Title 14 Part 43 under 43.1 titled Applicability (a) except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (d) of this section, this part prescribes rules governing the maintenance, preventative maintenance, rebuilding, and alteration of any - (b) this part does not apply to any aircraft for which the FAA has issued an experimental certificate, unless the FAA has previously issued a different kind of airworthiness certificate for that aircraft. In the FAR Title 14 Part 91 titled General Operating and Flight Rules, under section 91.409 titled Inspections, subsections c it states that Paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section do not apply to - (1) an aircraft that carries a special flight permit, a current experimental certificate, or a light-sport or provisional airworthiness certificate.
a loss of engine power due to oil starvation that was the result of misaligned main bearing halves that obstructed the oil galley passages. Since the history of the engine could not be reconstructed, the person or entity responsible for the bearing misalignment could not be determined. Also causal was the pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed while maneuvering for a forced landing that resulted in a stall/spin.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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