American AA 1 N6107L

Summary

On 5 September 2020 at about 22:50 local time, a American AA 1 registered N6107L, operated by Horton Steven K, was involved in an accident near Newnan, Georgia, United States. 2 people were 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

5 September 2020 at 22:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Newnan, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Newnan Coweta County (CCO)

Coordinates

33.3117, -84.7697

Aircraft

American AA 1

Registration

N6107L

Category

Airplane

Year built

1969

Engines

1

Operator

Horton Steven K

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

ERA20LA308

Nobody was injured.

The flight instructor’s inadequate preflight fuel planning, which resulted in an interruption of the fuel supply to the engine and a subsequent a total loss of engine power due.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the preflight inspection of the airplane, the flight instructor used the sight gauges inside the airplane to estimate that there was a total of approximately 10 to 11 gallons of fuel on board between the two wing fuel tanks. The flight instructor and the pilot receiving instruction departed and conducted maneuvers, simulated losses of engine power, and performed at least eight takeoffs and landings over the course of about 50 minutes. During a simulated loss of engine power in the airport traffic pattern, after descending to 300 ft above the ground, the pilot receiving instruction attempted to perform a go-around. The engine did not respond as expected and they performed a forced landing to a grassy area bordering the runway. During the landing attempt, the airplane impacted a taxiway marker and trees bordering the airport, resulting in substantial damage to the left wing and fuselage. The amount of fuel onboard at the time of the accident and its distribution was not determined; however, a postaccident test run of the engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. During a postaccident interview, the flight instructor estimated that the airplane’s fuel consumption was about 6 gallons per hour (gph). Review of fuel consumption data from the engine and airframe manufacturer showed that the engine could be expected to consume between 6.5 and 7.3 gallons per hour at higher power settings, and that the fuel consumption could be as much as 9.5 gallons per hour when producing full power. These fuel consumption rates did not account for fuel consumed during taxi, run up, and takeoff. Given the quantity of fuel onboard at the time of departure, the duration of the flight, the likely fuel consumption rate of the engine, and that the engine was successfully test run after the accident, it is likely that the loss of engine power was the result of an interruption of fuel flow to the engine; however, whether the fuel supply was completely exhausted or only the fuel in one of the tanks was exhausted could not be determined based on the available information. Had the flight instructor elected to depart with additional fuel, it is likely that the accident would not have occurred.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.