Cooper, David W. CHALLENGER II accident near Mill Creek, IN
On July 21, 2013, a Cooper, David W. CHALLENGER II (airplane) was involved in an accident near Mill Creek, IN. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- July 21, 2013
- Place
- Mill Creek, IN
- Aircraft
- Cooper, David W. CHALLENGER II · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 41.581°N, 86.531°W
- NTSB ID
- 20130723X91113
Official records · CEN13LA428
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On July 21, 2013, about 0700 eastern daylight time, an amateur-built Cooper Challenger II airplane, N1519, impacted terrain near Mill Creek, Indiana. The non-certificated pilot was fatally injured and the airplane was substantially damaged. The aircraft was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated without a flight plan. The flight originated from the Jerry Tyler Memorial Airport (3TR), Niles, Michigan, about 0630 and was en route to the Plymouth Municipal Airport (C65), Plymouth, Indiana. The airplane departed 3TR along with another airplane en route to C65. When the accident airplane did not arrive at C65, a search was conducted and the airplane was found in a corn field near Mill Creek Indiana. There were no known witnesses to the accident. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that there was no fuel in the fuel tank and no fuel was found in the carburetor bowl. No evidence of a fuel spill was detected at the accident site. Further examination of the airplane did not reveal any pre-impact anomalies. The pilot held a second class medical certificate issue on March 27, 2013. The limitations section of the medical certificate noted that the pilot must wear corrective lenses. There was no record of the pilot having been issued a pilot certificate by the Federal Aviation Administration. A pilot flight logbook was recovered and indicated that the pilot had received flight training in Cessna 172 airplanes betwee
Probable cause
The noncertificated pilot's improper fuel planning, which led to fuel exhaustion and a loss of engine power. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to obtain adequate instruction or an endorsement to solo in the accident airplane model, which led to his loss of airplane control during the forced landing.
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Browse: Indiana
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
