Pilot Debrief

BURTON Searey near Sherrills Ford, NC — 2023-05-31

Final reportERA23LA262
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Date
2023-05-31
Location
Sherrills Ford, NC, USA
Airport
NC26
Aircraft
BURTON Searey
Registration
N2440S
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Initial climb

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to configure the amphibious airplane’s landing gear before conducting a forced landing to a lake after a loss of engine power. Also causal was the occluded gascolator and the pilot’s lack of knowledge about the airplane’s fuel system, which resulted in his failure to locate and identify the condition of the gascolator following a previous loss of engine power event.

NTSB narrative

The pilot of the amphibious, amateur-built airplane, who had purchased the airplane several months earlier and did not hold a rating for airplane single-engine sea, departed the lakefront grass runway and performed a sharp left turn to assume his enroute heading without retracting the airplane’s landing gear. The pilot reported that, about halfway through the turn, the engine exhibited a sudden loss of power but continued running with excessive vibration. Remedial actions to restore power were unsuccessful. The pilot stated that he selected a forced landing site on the lake and moved the landing gear selector to the “up” position with “about 25 ft of altitude nearing 50 mph of airspeed.” Photographs taken by a witness showed that the airplane contacted the water with the landing gear extended. The pilot stated that the airplane pitched forward upon water contact and came to rest upright in the water with substantial damage to the fuselage and right wing strut. Months before the accident, the pilot experienced a power loss event with the airplane that he and other owners of the same airplane make/model could not diagnose, ultimately agreeing that it was a case of the fuel tank unporting due to a low fuel state. Immediately after the accident, the pilot started the engine several times, but it would “choke out” each time. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed a gascolator occluded by rusty particles and containing water and trace amounts of fuel. The pilot reported that he was unaware of this gascolator in the fuel system, and that its occlusion could have led to both engine power loss events. The owner declined to test run the engine after clearing the gascolator of contaminants, citing fears of further damage to the airplane since the engine was loose on its mounts.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Engine power loss
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have opted for a different takeoff procedure to avoid engine issues.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Photos
  • 6 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents6

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