Rutan VARIEZE accident near Columbia, CA

On September 5, 2022, a Rutan VARIEZE (airplane) was involved in an accident near Columbia, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.

Date

September 5, 2022

Place

Columbia, CA

Aircraft

Rutan VARIEZE · Airplane

Injuries

1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Substantial

Position

38.043°N, 120.410°W

NTSB ID

20220906105874

Official records · WPR22FA335

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn September 05, 2022, about 0948 Pacific daylight time, a Rutan Varieze, N10EZ, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Columbia, California. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot had been performing maintenance on the accident airplane and upgrading various systems. The weeks before the accident, he installed an Electroair electronic ignition system. The accident flight was the first flight out of maintenance. The radar and ADS-B data indicated that the airplane departed runway 17 about 0845. The airplane continued southeast about 8 nautical miles (nm) and then retuned back to the airport, landing on the same runway about 0858. The recorded data then shows that around 0903 the airplane departed and continued southeast in a climb for about 35 nm. After about 18 minutes, the airplane made a 180° left turn while passing through 13,500 ft mean seal level (msl). The airplane climbed to a peak altitude of 16,475 msl and then began a descent, maneuvering into a left traffic pattern for runway 35. The airplane made a high-speed pass over runway 35 and then continued north-northeast for about 5 nm. The airplane returned back to the airport; around 0945, it passed over the center of the airport at an altitude of 2,850 ft (see Figure 1 below). The airplane turned right and joined the right traffic pattern for runway 17. At 0946:56, the airplane turned onto the base leg and the airspeed decreased. Figure 1: Recorded ADS-B Data from the end of the

Probable cause

The pilot’s improper maintenance of the ignition system, which led to an ignition system failure and a loss of engine power.

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.