Pflugradt KITFOX N925DP

Summary

On 20 March 2018 at about 20:15 local time, a Pflugradt KITFOX registered N925DP was involved in an accident near Clatskanie, Oregon, 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

20 March 2018 at 20:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Clatskanie, Oregon, United States

Coordinates

46.0598, -123.2710

Aircraft

Pflugradt KITFOX

Registration

N925DP

Category

Airplane

Year built

2014

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pacific City → Vancouver

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR18LA111

Nobody was injured.

A partial loss of engine power due to an improperly secured throttle cable set screw.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airline transport pilot of the experimental, amateur-built airplane reported that, while flying about 800 ft above a river during a personal flight, he advanced the throttle to climb then the engine started to lose power. He elected to land on a nearby island, during which the airplane nosed over.  Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the throttle cable set screw on the aft side of the throttle body arm had backed out of its original position and was no longer securing the throttle cable. As a result, the cable moved freely with no corresponding motion on the throttle body arm. This would have also resulted in the pilot's inability to adjust the engine power from the cockpit throttle control. Maintenance records revealed that the pilot built and installed the throttle body arm about 7 months and 204 flight hours before the accident. In addition, a vernier-style throttle cable was installed about 6 months and 159 flight hours before the accident. It is likely that the set screw was improperly secured during one of the previous maintenance events and came loose during operation, which released its hold on the throttle cable.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.