Pilot Debrief

JAMROS ROBERT L JR CHALLENGER II near Port Orange, FL — 2023-08-04

Final reportERA23LA324
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Date
2023-08-04
Location
Port Orange, FL, USA
Airport
7FL6
Aircraft
JAMROS ROBERT L JR CHALLENGER II
Registration
N906WV
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
Serious
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

The total loss of engine power due to an out-of-temperature seizure of the PTO cylinder.

NTSB narrative

The pilot reported the engine lost power shortly after takeoff, while at an altitude of about 900 ft. The pilot established best glide speed and attempted to restart the engine several times; however, the engine did not regain power. The pilot then performed a forced landing. During the forced landing, the airplane impacted a tree followed by terrain and sustained substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. Postaccident examination of the two-stroke engine revealed that the power take-off (PTO) cylinder had significant scoring along the cylinder walls, which was consistent with the cylinder being subjected to an out-of-temperature seizure. No further anomalies or mechanical failures were observed that would have prevented normal operation. Given that the visible signatures of a hot seizure and a cold seizure of a cylinder are the same, the type of seizure could not be determined with the available information.

NTSB coding

View NTSB final report

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