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| Date: | Sunday 9 August 2009 |
| Time: | 18:00 |
| Type: |  Rutan VariEze |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N808SA |
| MSN: | 1654 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 680 hours |
| Engine model: | Continental O-200 SERIES |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | North Augusta, South Carolina -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Graniteville, SC (S17) |
| Graniteville, SC (S17) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot of the amateur-built airplane stated that he was having problems with “dirt dabbers” getting into the fuel vent on his airplane, and he installed a black rubber cap on the fuel vent. The pilot conducted a preflight inspection prior to the accident flight; however, he failed to remove the cap. He departed and was in cruise flight at 2,000 feet mean sea level, paralleling an interstate highway when the engine lost power. The pilot further stated that he immediately knew what happened. "The engine had quit because the air could not enter the fuel tank due to the blocked fuel vent line, which caused the loss of engine power due to fuel starvation." Examination of the airplane revealed the fuel vent was blocked with a black cap. No other anomalies were noted with the airframe, flight controls, fuel system, engine assembly, or associated components.
Probable Cause: A loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot's inadequate preflight inspection.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-Aug-2009 10:55 | slowkid | Added |
| 10-Aug-2009 11:54 | harro | Updated |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:25 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 02-Dec-2017 16:02 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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