Wasilla, AK, USA
N106M
Fairchild 42
The accident pilot, a certified aircraft mechanic, reported the airplane was in cruise flight when the engine had a total loss of engine power. Emergency procedures failed to restart the engine, and the pilot selected an airstrip for an emergency landing site. The airplane was unable to reach the airstrip, and collided with trees. Postaccident inspection of the engine disclosed a leaking carburetor. The leaking carburetor was removed, and replaced with a serviceable carburetor. The engine started and ran without any observed deficiencies. The leaking carburetor was disassembled, and the metal float was found to be cracked. The metal float contained 2.4 ounces of fuel. The pilot noted that he had recently purchased the carburetor from an aircraft mechanic, and that he had requested the carburetor to be overhauled prior to installation on the accident airplane. The mechanic stated he did not perform the carburetor float leak check because he only de-preserved the carburetor, and did not overhaul the carburetor. The carburetor had been installed on the airplane about 3 flight hours prior to the accident.
On October 12, 2003, about 1500 Alaska daylight time, a tailwheel-equipped 1927 model year Fairchild 42 airplane, N106M, sustained substantial damage when it collided with trees, about 10 miles west of Wasilla, Alaska, after a total loss of engine power during cruise flight. The airplane was being operated by the pilot as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal local flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91 when the accident occurred. The commercial pilot received minor injuries, and the sole passenger was not injured. The flight originated at the Anderson Lake Airport, Wasilla, Alaska, about 1430. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on October 12, the pilot said the airplane was in cruise flight when it had a total loss of engine power. The pilot said attempts to restart the engine failed, and the airplane impacted trees about 100 feet short of the dirt runway at Gannon's Landing, Wasilla, the intended emergency landing area. He said there were no known mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the flight. He said the wings were severed from the fuselage, and the fuselage sustained structural damage during the accident. On October 15, the airplane was inspected by the IIC in a hangar at Anderson Lake. The pilot demonstrated that when fuel was applied to the engine, fuel leaked out of the carburetor. The pilot, who is a certified aircraft mechanic, said the carburetor was a rebuilt carburetor installed on the airplane about 3 flying hours prior to the accident, and that he still possessed the original carburetor. The leaking carburetor was removed, and the original carburetor was installed on the airplane. The airplane was taken outside the hangar, and the engine was started. It ran without any observed deficiencies. On October 21, the leaking carburetor was taken to Aero Recip, Anchorage, Alaska, by the IIC and disassembled. The carburetor had a metal float. The float's soldered seam was cracked, and the float contained 2.4 ounces of fuel. On October 22, during an interview with the IIC, the owner/mechanic of Fishcreek Airmotive, Palmer, Alaska, said he sold the carburetor to the pilot several months earlier. He said the carburetor had been preserved, and had been sitting on a shelf in his shop for years. He said the pilot asked if he would de-preserve the carburetor. He said he purchased an overhaul manual, and seals for the carburetor. He disassembled the carburetor, cleaned it, and replaced the seals prior to reassembly. He said the pilot picked up the carburetor, but returned it a few days later saying it didn't work. He disassembled the carburetor, and found an O-ring missing. He installed the O-ring, and reassembled the carburetor. Later the pilot reported to him that the engine was running fine with the carburetor. The owner said he did not perform the carburetor float leak check called for in the overhaul manual because he was de-preserving, and not overhauling, the carburetor. In a written statement attached to the NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident report form 6120.1, submitted by the pilot, dated October 20, 2003, the pilot wrote that his agreement with the mechanic was to purchase the carburetor in an "overhauled" state.
The inadequate inspection of the carburetor by the aircraft mechanic who had recently worked on the carburetor, which failed to detect a cracked float, resulting in a total loss of engine power during cruise flight. A factor associated with the accident was the lack of suitable terrain for a forced landing.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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