Aero COMP-AIR-6 N61520

Summary

On 5 March 2000 at about 19:44 local time, a Aero COMP-AIR-6 registered N61520 was involved in an accident near Indiantown, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 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

5 March 2000 at 19:44

Classification

Accident

Location

Indiantown, Florida, United States

Coordinates

27.0290, -80.4594

Aircraft

Aero COMP-AIR-6

Registration

N61520

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Homestead → Merritt Island

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ATL00LA033

1 person was seriously injured.

The maintenance personnel inadequate inspection of the fuel system that resulted in loss of engine power due to fuel filter contamination.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The day before the flight the pilot had topped-off the fuel tanks with aviation fuel and he had flown the airplane about 25 minutes after the refueling. After the 25-minute flight, the pilot parked the airplane, and it was not flown again until the next day. Before the flight, the pilot received a weather briefing, filed a flight plan, and completed a preflight inspection. The fuel sample taken during the preflight inspection was free of visible contaminates. About one hour and 44 minutes into the flight, the pilot experienced a loss of engine power. The pilot selected a nearby orange grove for a forced landing and established an approach to a road in the orange grove. As the pilot maneuvered the airplane for the touchdown, the tail section of the airplane collided with a tree, the airplane turned several degrees, collided with the ground, and slid into an embankment. During the examination of the airplane, rust and other debris were recovered from the fuel system filter assembly. The composition of the debris was not determined, however the debris reduced the normal flow of fuel through the fuel system. The airplane had undergone routine maintenance and preflight inspections.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.