Rockwell COMMANDER 114 N114AL

Summary

On 26 September 1998 at about 19:10 local time, a Rockwell COMMANDER 114 registered N114AL was involved in an accident near Atwater, California, United States. One person was 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

26 September 1998 at 19:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Atwater, California, United States

Nearest airport

Castle Air Force Base (MER)

Coordinates

37.3195, -120.6301

Aircraft

Rockwell COMMANDER 114

Registration

N114AL

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Watsonville → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX98LA308

Nobody was injured.

An internal capacitor failure and melting of the point cam followers, which resulted in failure of both magnetos, and subsequent total loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The engine sputtered then quit as the pilot was initiating a turn to base. He landed hard on the runway and severed the right main landing gear. The aircraft continued forward on the runway, then impacted a runway light and veered off into a grassy area. An FAA inspector examined the engine and noted no external damage. The aircraft was equipped with a dual cased single-drive magneto and the maintenance records indicated that a 500-hour inspection had been performed on the magneto on June 13, 1998. The mechanic reported that he checked all the points for evidence of arcing and found none. He stated that he ran the magneto on a test bench and it ran normally. Postaccident examination of the magneto revealed that the right points did not open and the left points would close intermittently. It was further noted that the cam followers for both sides of the magneto were melted. Neither capacitor passed the insulation resistance test at 400 VDC. The magneto was test run with the original harness and capacitors attached. Both sides of the magneto generated sparks at 500 and 1,000 rpm. A 150-watt lamp was set up next to the magneto to simulate engine heat. The magneto was then run at a speed approximating cruise speed. After 5 minutes, the right magneto ceased to generate sparks. The left magneto generated sparks for the duration of the test. The pilot reported that he performed two magneto checks prior to takeoff, with no noted discrepancies.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.