Mestas Felix R VELOCITY LWFG-E N535BM

Summary

On 10 December 2005 at about 15:00 local time, a Mestas Felix R VELOCITY LWFG-E registered N535BM was involved in an accident near Punta Gorda, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 December 2005 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Punta Gorda, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Charlotte County Airport (PGD)

Coordinates

26.9203, -81.9906

Aircraft

Mestas Felix R VELOCITY LWFG-E

Registration

N535BM

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Punta Gorda → Punta Gorda

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA06LA028

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot/builder of the accident airplane stated that the takeoff and initial climb were normal until the airplane reached about 200-300 feet, when the engine began "losing compression." He further stated that the airspeed began to bleed off, so he lowered the nose to maintain 80 knots and turned the airplane back toward the runway. He said that he was unable to reach the runway, so he decided to land in the grass on the airport property. According to the pilot the landing flare and touchdown were normal, but during the rollout the airplane struck a taxiway sign, became airborne, impacted the ground again on the main landing gear, and then came to a sudden stop in a ditch. It then caught fire and was mostly consumed in the flames. According to the pilot/builder, the airplane had a General Motors automobile conversion V-6 engine, and the accident flight was the first flight after the airplane had been built. Prior to the flight only ground taxi operations had been performed. During takeoff on the first and accident flight, the pilot said he noticed the engine temperature gauge needle showing that the engine was operating at a very high temperature. The pilot/builder said that postcrash examination of the engine could not be accomplished because it had been constructed largely of aluminum and the intense heat of the postcrash fire mostly consumed the engine and melted the aluminum.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.