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When the engine failed on the PA-18 while banner towing over a populated seashore the pilot was forced to ditch off the beach on water covered with a reef and rocks. The aircraft flipped over on touchdown but the pilot was not seriously injured.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1097281 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201306 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | PA-18/19 Super Cub |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Route In Use | None |
| Flight Plan | None |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Engine |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Single Pilot Captain |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Commercial Flight Crew Instrument Flight Crew Multiengine |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 80 Flight Crew Total 400 Flight Crew Type 110 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Illness |
Narrative:
I was flying a PA-18 (super cub) towing a banner along the shoreline on an eastbound heading. The altimeter was indicating between 550 and 560 feet. Weather conditions in the area were complete VFR; no rain; no haze; no thunderstorm; it was clear. I departed with 66 gallons of avgas on board. An hour and fifteen minutes after takeoff the engine experienced complete power loss. At this altitude I decided to release the banner in a safe area where no people could get harmed; add full power [with no success] and head my plane to the sand part of the beach. This decision was made due to the fact that the public beach ahead was full of people at that time. As soon as I completed my turn; I saw a guy walking along the beach; this obligated me to further increase my turn in order to protect this person's life; while the plane continued to descend. Once the plane touched the water and the reef I felt the plane getting stuck on the rocks and it flipped. It was a totally controlled touchdown. Once the plane stopped moving I grabbed my seat belt and released it. I pushed myself out of the plane and headed to the beach walking on my own. As I turned my head back to look at the plane I saw oil in the water and fuel was coming out of the plane's tank. From this moment and on; the events were related to medical intervention from paramedics.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: When the engine failed on the PA-18 while banner towing over a populated seashore the pilot was forced to ditch off the beach on water covered with a reef and rocks. The aircraft flipped over on touchdown but the pilot was not seriously injured.
Narrative: I was flying a PA-18 (Super Cub) towing a banner along the shoreline on an eastbound heading. The altimeter was indicating between 550 and 560 feet. Weather conditions in the area were complete VFR; no rain; no haze; no thunderstorm; it was clear. I departed with 66 gallons of Avgas on board. An hour and fifteen minutes after takeoff the engine experienced complete power loss. At this altitude I decided to release the banner in a safe area where no people could get harmed; add full power [with no success] and head my plane to the sand part of the beach. This decision was made due to the fact that the public beach ahead was full of people at that time. As soon as I completed my turn; I saw a guy walking along the beach; this obligated me to further increase my turn in order to protect this person's life; while the plane continued to descend. Once the plane touched the water and the reef I felt the plane getting stuck on the rocks and it flipped. It was a totally controlled touchdown. Once the plane stopped moving I grabbed my seat belt and released it. I pushed myself out of the plane and headed to the beach walking on my own. As I turned my head back to look at the plane I saw oil in the water and fuel was coming out of the plane's tank. From this moment and on; the events were related to medical intervention from paramedics.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.