North American SNJ-5 N89014

Summary

On 3 December 1993 at about 00:15 local time, a North American SNJ-5 registered N89014, operated by American Airpower Heritage, was involved in an accident near Santa Paula, California, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 December 1993 at 00:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Santa Paula, California, United States

Coordinates

34.3991, -119.0705

Aircraft

North American SNJ-5

Registration

N89014

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

American Airpower Heritage

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Camarillo → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX94LA063

Nobody was injured.

was the failure of the needle valve pin assembly in the airplane's carburetor. A factor which contributed to the accident was the lack of suitable terrain for the emergency landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that while cruising at 3,800 feet mean sea level he suddenly detected a 'very strong smell of aviation gasoline and the engine stopped running.' The pilot attempted to restart the engine, but was not successful. The pilot further reported that he did not have sufficient altitude to glide to any airport, so he made an emergency landing in a nearby river bed. During rollout, the airplane collided with vegetation. An examination of the engine revealed it had stopped as a result of being flooded with excessive fuel. The cause of the flooding related to the improper functioning of the carburetor's needle valve pin.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.