Amateur-built Bushmaster accident near Delta Junction, Alaska, September 4, 2006
On September 4, 2006 at about 5:00 am local time, a amateur-built Bushmaster, registered N5090F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Delta Junction, Alaska (Delta Junction airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
An electrical short that disabled the electronic ignition system of the airplane's engine during the final approach phase for landing, which resulted in a forced landing and collision with high vegetation. A factor contributing to the accident was the failure of the pilot to maintain proper altitude in the landing pattern to reach the runway during the forced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 4, 2006 · about 5:00 am local time
- Place
- Delta Junction, Alaska · Delta Junction · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Bushmaster
- Registration
- N5090F · no longer on the register · serial 001
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial certificated pilot was accumulating flight hours on an experimental airplane for the builder, as part of a Title 14, CFR Part 91 flight test period to comply with the experimental type certificate. The airplane's engine was an automotive, Ford 3.8L, V-6. It was equipped with an electronic ignition system. After 1.25 hours of flight time, the pilot was on final approach for landing, and when he turned on the airplane's landing light, the engine lost power. He was unable to restart the engine and descended into high vegetation, about 200 feet short of the runway. The airplane received structural damage to the wings and landing gear. An FAA inspector examined the airplane at the accident site. He found an electrical short in the landing light system. The inspector indicated that the electrical short also disabled the electronic ignition system on the engine.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,000 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 700 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: June 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, August 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 2,500 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Ford 3.8 L (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: D66 Delta Junction AK at 10:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 07, 2,400 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 075° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 6,500 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from PABI, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.