Amateur-built AERO COMP-6 accident near Brainerd, Minnesota, December 8, 2000
On December 8, 2000 at about 8:00 pm local time, a amateur-built AERO COMP-6, registered N4334Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Brainerd, Minnesota. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 pilot's inadequate preflight of the airplane which resulted in fuel exhaustion. Factors associated with the accident were the loose fuel cap and the snow covered terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 8, 2000 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Brainerd, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built AERO COMP-6 AERO COMP-
- Registration
- N4334Z · no longer on the register · serial AC6114
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane nosed over during a forced landing. The pilot reported that he replaced the fuel sensors and calibrated the fuel system with the tailwheel on the ground. He also "stick measured" the amount of fuel in each tank. He then departed on the flight with 26 gallons of fuel on board with the fuel gauges indicating just under half full. Approximately 30 minutes after departure he noticed the fuel gauges were reading low. He reported he was not alarmed as he thought they were erroneous and that he would need to recalibrate the fuel system with the tailwheel in a flight attitude. Approximately 10 minutes later, the engine began to lose power. A forced landing was made in a snow covered hay field during which the airplane nosed over. Examination of the airplane revealed fuel exhaustion as a result of fuel siphoning due to a loose fuel cap.
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: 219 hours in all; 38 in this make and model; 6 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 219 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 91 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 2, 2000; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,500 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-R (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MN17 at 7:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from BRD
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.
Other NTSB records under N4334Z the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.