Gilbertson ZODIAC CH601HDS N474BG

Summary

On 1 February 2003 at about 19:00 local time, a Gilbertson ZODIAC CH601HDS registered N474BG was involved in an accident near Grandfield, Oklahoma, 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

1 February 2003 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Grandfield, Oklahoma, United States

Nearest airport

Chattanooga Sky Harbor (92F)

Coordinates

34.2378, -98.7419

Aircraft

Gilbertson ZODIAC CH601HDS

Registration

N474BG

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Flight Test

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Chattanooga → Chattanooga

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW03LA091

Nobody was injured.

The loss of engine power for an undetermined reason. Contributing factors were the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing and the unfavorable wind.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During a test flight on the morning of the accident, the engine was running rough; however, the pilot landed the airplane without further incident. The pilot removed the carburetor screen, cleaned the debris from the screen, and reinstalled the screen. During the accident flight, the oil and water temperature indicated 205-210 degrees, and the flight was returning to the airport. At an airspeed of 70 knots and an altitude of 500 feet agl, there was a total loss of engine power. The pilot performed the emergency landing procedures; however, he was not able to turn the airplane into the wind due to an unsafe landing area east of the airport traffic pattern for the runway. The pilot landed the airplane with a right quartering tailwind (25 knots, gusts 30 knots) in a field. During the landing roll, the nose landing gear struck a berm, the nose landing gear collapsed, and the airplane structure twisted as the airplane came to rest. The reason for the loss of engine power was not determined. The pilot reported the winds were from the southwest at 25 knots with gust to 30 knots. The airplane had accumulated 27.6 hours of the required 40 hours of flight time under the operating limitations for the homebuilt airplane.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.