Pravecek Lawrence VARIEZE N42231
25 August 2002 · Rio Linda, California, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 25 August 2002 at about 03:00 local time, a Pravecek Lawrence VARIEZE registered N42231 was involved in an accident near Rio Linda, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 03:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Rio Linda, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Rio Linda (Q94)
- Coordinates
- 38.6761, -121.4456
- Aircraft
- Pravecek Lawrence VARIEZE
- Registration
- N42231
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Rio Linda → Rio Linda
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX02LA263
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
the loss of engine power caused by fuel exhaustion due to a fuel tank leak. Also causal was the inadequate maintenance performed on the repair of the fuel tank by unknown maintenance personnel.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The experimental amateur-built airplane lost engine power while the student pilot was turning onto an extended final approach. The airplane impacted trees and terrain short of the runway. The pilot reported that the right fuel tank ruptured in flight. An FAA inspector, who examined the airplane following the accident, reported that the right fuel tank had been patched to prevent fuel leakage on at least two separate occasions. The inspector noted fuel leaking around the patches; which eventually resulted in fuel exhaustion. The airplane underwent its last annual inspection 6 months prior to the accident. According to the pilot, the previous owner had the patches applied.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jul 2002 | Ayres S2R-T34 | Firebaugh, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 13 Nov 2002 | Beechcraft A36TC | San Andreas, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 5 May 2002 | Sierra RAF 2000 GTX-SE | Lompoc, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Mar 2002 | Trenti RV-4 | Jacumba, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 23 Feb 2002 | Thunder and Colt COLT 120 A | Moreno Valley, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 21 Sep 2002 | Pzl-Bielsko SZD-42-2 JANTAR | Hemet, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |