Amateur-built PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER accident near Andover, Minnesota, August 28, 2000
On August 28, 2000, a amateur-built PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER, registered N89JW, was destroyed in an accident near Andover, Minnesota. 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
The trees and the unsuitable terrain for landing encountered during the forced landing. Factors were the side slip to avoid the trees initiated by the pilot, the fractured piston, and the cracked cylinder.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 28, 2000
- Place
- Andover, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER PIETENPOL
- Registration
- N89JW · no longer on the register · serial 012
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was destroyed during a forced landing after a loss of engine power while in cruise flight. The pilot said that, at about 2 hours into the flight, he, "...heard, or felt a single jolt or retort. The plane continued to function normally. A short time later it began to smell 'hot' in the cockpit. Gauges were normal... Almost immediately I noted my cylinder head temperature had climbed to 400 [degrees] F." The pilot said that he subsequently saw blue smoke from the left side of the engine and it began to run rough. The pilot attempted to land in a "weed" field. He said that during the landing he, "...was approaching the trees at the end of the field so I side slipped to the ground striking the [right] wing, then the nose and coming to rest facing the direction I came from." The pilot reported that subsequent to the accident, he found that the number 4 cylinder and piston were damaged. He found the cylinder cracked and the piston skirt broken. He reported the extent of the damage to the aircraft as "destroyed". The pilot reported no other anomalies.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 251 hours in all; 148 in this make and model; 34 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 191 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 20, 1999; 49 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,080 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Chevrolet CORVAIR (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AXN Alexandria MN at 10:20 pm
- Destination: ANE Minneapolis MN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 167°F (75°C), dew point 149°F (65°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 pm from ANE, 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.