Mellinger B L Iii/Briebleb R GLASAIR III N196G

Summary

On 17 July 2023 at about 14:55 local time, a Mellinger B L Iii/Briebleb R GLASAIR III registered N196G was involved in an accident near Pahrump, Nevada, 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

17 July 2023 at 14:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Pahrump, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

Calvada Meadows (74P)

Coordinates

36.2705, -115.9945

Aircraft

Mellinger B L Iii/Briebleb R GLASAIR III

Registration

N196G

Category

Airplane

Year built

1997

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR23LA272

Nobody was injured.

A fuel leak due to damaged threads on a fuel line fitting, which resulted in an interruption of fuel flow and a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot detected the odor of fuel in the cockpit shortly after taking off. He turned the fuel boost pump off to alleviate the fuel smell. The fuel smell remained, and the engine surged and lost power. The pilot turned the fuel pump back on and switched fuel tanks to restart the engine. The engine did not restart so he performed a forced landing to a highway. The airplane hit a sign and the landing gear collapsed during the landing, resulting in substantial damage to both wings. During postaccident examination of the airplane a fuel leak was found in a fitting where the fuel line passes through the firewall to the engine. The connection at the fitting was tight, but abrasion damage was found to the fitting threads when the fuel line was disconnected. Maintenance was performed on fuel-related engine components about three months before the accident, but it was not determined if the fuel line to the damaged fitting was manipulated at that time. The accident is consistent with the engine losing total power due to fuel starvation resulting from a fuel leak that interrupted fuel flow to the engine. The leak resulted from the damaged threads on the fuel line fitting; the damage to the fittings likely occurred at an undetermined time during prior maintenance.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.