Amateur-built Pitts Special SPS-1 accident near Revere, Minnesota, January 5, 2012
On January 5, 2012 at about 4:30 pm local time, a amateur-built Pitts Special SPS-1, registered N330BL, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Revere, Minnesota. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The total loss of engine power during cruise flight due to fuel contamination and the inadequate design of the fuel system.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 5, 2012 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Revere, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Pitts Special SPS-1
- Registration
- N330BL · registry record · serial 1
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane had not been flown for over 6 months prior to the accident flight. Before departure, the pilot added about 3 gallons of fuel to the existing fuel on board the airplane. The pilot did not find contamination when he drained fuel from the main fuel tank sump drain. About 20 minutes after departure, during cruise flight, the airplane experienced a total loss of engine power that led the pilot to conduct a forced landing on a road. The airplane nosed over during the landing. An examination of the airplane revealed that the airplane was not equipped, nor was it required to be equipped, with a fuel sump drain(s) for the wing tank, which drained into the main fuel tank. Water contamination was present in the fuel line leading to the carburetor, but no water contamination was noted when the main fuel tank sump—the only available sump—was drained. Accordingly, water was likely in the wing tanks and fed into the main tank after it was sumped. The water then entered the fuel lines. The lack of sump drains in the wing tanks is an inadequate design because it does not allow a pilot to remove all water from the fuel system.
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
What happened, in order
- Collision during takeoff/land during landing
- Fuel contamination during enroute (cruise) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid condition
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Fuel system › (general) › Design
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 2,652 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 2 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 2,418 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: January 4, 2012
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,053 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, June 10, 2011
- Maximum gross weight: 1,219 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MDS Madison SD at 4:00 pm
- Destination: FBL Faribault MN
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.78 inHg
- Observation at 3:15 pm from KMML, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.