Elliott Cirrus VK30 N60GE

Summary

On 27 August 2007 at about 22:10 local time, a Elliott Cirrus VK30 registered N60GE was involved in an accident near Watrous, New Mexico, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

27 August 2007 at 22:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Watrous, New Mexico, United States

Coordinates

35.7231, -104.9950

Aircraft

Elliott Cirrus VK30

Registration

N60GE

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Liberal → Albuquerque

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN07LA148

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during a forced landing that resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the ruptured pressurized oil line.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Witnesses reported seeing the airplane "flying at an odd angle" and trailing smoke. The accident site was described as an open field and suitable for a forced landing. The landing gear was down, and there were three propeller strike marks in the earth at the point of touchdown. It was determined that the airplane had at least an 11 to 12 degree nose-up angle at the point of touchdown. The wreckage path, from initial impact point to the final resting point, was strewn with airplane parts that had been exposed to fire. Several airplane pieces, mostly from the engine area, were scattered near and prior to the initial impact point. They had also been exposed to fire. The right intake scoop, that covers the right side of the engine and the right turbocharger, was heat blistered. Disassembly and examination of the engine revealed no anomalies that would have prevented normal operation and production of rated power. Metallurgical examination of the turbochargers showed "no evidence of cracks, punctures, or holes that would allow any exhaust gas to escape, and the mechanical damage was determined to be impact related." The right turbocharger, however, exhibited "a black flame impingement pattern on the outboard side of the wastegate actuator. The rear face of the actuator mounting bracket displayed a similar impingement pattern and the forward face of the bracket displayed a deposit consistent with flame contact. The impingement pattern was consistent with a flame directed forward. To the rear of the actuator are two oil lines, one is an oil pressure line from the engine and the other is connected to the density controller (the density controller is operated by the discharge air pressure from the turbocharger and adjusts the bleed rate of the oil pressure thereby controlling the wastegate actuator). A portion of the upper oil line was still attached to the actuator and an examination revealed that only the wire braiding remained. The wire braiding was discolored, consistent with it being overheated." The airplane's co-builder supplied photographs that showed "there was no other flame source to the rear of the oil line and the actuator. It is therefore probable that a leak in the oil line sprayed oil forward onto the wastegate actuator and the oil spray was ignited by the hot turbine section of the turbocharger to which the actuator is connected, and initiated the in-flight fire." The pilot's autopsy revealed no soot in the air passageways. Carbon monoxide and cyanide tests could not be performed.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.