Zenith CH601 N601MR

Summary

On 13 July 2019 at about 12:50 local time, a Zenith CH601 registered N601MR was involved in an accident near Carlisle, Pennsylvania, 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

13 July 2019 at 12:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Carlisle, Pennsylvania, United States

Nearest airport

Carlisle (N94)

Coordinates

40.1878, -77.1694

Aircraft

Zenith CH601

Registration

N601MR

Category

Airplane

Year built

2009

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Carlisle → York

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA19LA224

Nobody was injured.

Water contamination of the fuel system, which resulted in a total loss of engine power. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's inadequate preflight inspection, which failed to remove all the water from the airplane's fuel system.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot noted water in the fuel tanks while performing a preflight inspection and sampled the fuel until it appeared clear of contamination. He refueled the airplane, performed an engine run-up, and took off. During the initial climb, the airplane reached about 200 ft above ground level before the engine lost total power; the pilot landed on the remaining runway. The airplane overran the departure end of the runway and impacted a ditch, which resulted in substantial damage. Postaccident examination of the airplane's fuel system revealed that it was contaminated with water throughout. Testing of the airport fuel tank revealed no evidence of contamination, and no other airplanes fueled around the time of the accident airplane reported contamination. It is likely that some water remained in the airplane's fuel system after the preflight inspection, which resulted in a total loss of power in flight when the contaminated fuel reached the engine.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.