Amateur-built Rutan Long EZE accident near Albuquerque, New Mexico, August 7, 2005
On August 7, 2005 at about 5:10 pm local time, a amateur-built Rutan Long EZE, registered N16WF, was substantially damaged in an accident near Albuquerque, New Mexico (Albuquerque Intl. Sunport airport). It was a business 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
a total electrical failure due to a short in the master relay, causing the main fuse to open. Contributing factors included an inadequate electrical design by the airplane's builder, a low-output alternator, a cement wall, and unsuitable terrain on which to make a forced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 7, 2005 · about 5:10 pm local time
- Place
- Albuquerque, New Mexico · Albuquerque Intl. Sunport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Rutan Long EZE
- Registration
- N16WF · registry record · serial 049
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On final approach to the runway, the pilot lowered the landing gear and visually inspected it through the sight glass to make sure it was down and locked. About 20 seconds later, there was a sudden and total electrical failure and the engine lost power. The pilot switched from the MAIN battery to the AUX battery in an attempt to restore electrical and engine power, but left it selected for only about 2 to 3 seconds. He then switched back to the MAIN battery and concentrated on the emergency forced landing. He could not recall if the propeller was windmilling at the time (a windmilling propeller would be necessary to start the engine using AUX battery power). The pilot made a forced landing on an access road and collided with a wall causing substantial damage. The airplane was equipped with a dual electronic ignition system, not magnetos. A constant source of electrical power was required for ignition. In the event of an electrical power loss, the engine would lose power. An FAA avionics inspector said the 5-amp main fuse had opened, probably due to a shorted wire inside the master relay, resulting in an over-current condition. This caused the master relay to de-energize and cut power to the bus. The alternator, which was tested to 10.5 volt output, has a nominal output of 13.8 volts. Minimal output to charge the battery is 12.5 volts. The FAA inspector's statement noted that the cockpit-mounted master switch activated the positive side of the master relay solenoid. Standard industry practice was to wire the positive side of the master relay to the unfused input from the battery, and then switch the negative side using the master switch. Some commercially available solenoids have the positive terminal wired to the battery input.
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, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,610 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 62 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days; 2,829 as pilot in command; 1,528 on instruments
- Last flight review: May 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 542.6 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, September 1, 2004; 72.6 hours since
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-B2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HND Las Vegas NV at 1:20 pm
- Destination: ABQ Albequerque NM
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 8, 13,793 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 0 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; a few clouds at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.28 inHg
- Observation at 4:56 pm from ABQ
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DEN05LA123.