Zielke RV-4 N8ZZ

Summary

On 25 December 1999 at about 19:00 local time, a Zielke RV-4 registered N8ZZ was involved in an accident near Florence, New Jersey, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 December 1999 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Florence, New Jersey, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Zielke RV-4

Registration

N8ZZ

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Philadelphia → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC00LA061

1 person had minor injuries.

Failure of one of the propeller blades. A factor was the necessity land across, rather than in alignment with, the furrowed terrain due to the nature of the emergency.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

About 30 minutes after takeoff, the pilot felt a 'buzz,' which lasted approximately 2 seconds. The airplane then shook violently, so the pilot retarded the throttle to reduce the shaking. He then turned the magnetos off, one at a time, and reapplied power, but the shaking returned with each power application. Carburetor heat was also applied, with no effect. The pilot then tried to add enough power to maintain altitude, but still found that its application resulted in violent shaking. Power was again reduced to keep the airplane controllable. The pilot attempted to guide the airplane to a nearby airport, but could not hold altitude, and headed for a plowed field. He tried to align the airplane with the furrows, but was unable to due to the approach angle. Upon touchdown, the landing gear collapsed, and the wing spars were damaged. During post-flight examination, part of one of the wooden propeller blades was found to be missing. There was no evidence of a bird strike. The propeller had been bolted onto the hub with the correct torque's, and the cowling had been found securely fastened to the airframe. The engine was also examined, with no significant anomalies noted, and there was no indication of airframe flutter.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.