Amateur-built Christian Eagle I accident near Pocahontas, Arkansas, June 6, 2006
On June 6, 2006 at about 1:00 pm local time, a amateur-built Christian Eagle I, registered N181DM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Pocahontas, Arkansas (None airport). 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 loss of engine power as a result of a fractured crankshaft due to fatigue. A factor was the engine modifications to increase engine horsepower.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 6, 2006 · about 1:00 pm local time
- Place
- Pocahontas, Arkansas · None
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Christian Eagle I
- Registration
- N181DM · registry record · serial M002
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 18,700-hour pilot was piloting his single-engine experimental airplane at an altitude of 4,500 feet mean sea level (msl) when he started to feel a "slight vibration" or "light buzz" from the engine. The vibrations gradually became more severe until there was a loud bang and the engine seized. The pilot made a forced landing to a hay field. Metallurgical examination of the engine revealed the crankshaft had fractured through the crank cheek, between the #5 and #6 cylinder journals as a result of fatigue cracking. Further examination revealed that the crankshaft was susceptible to early subsurface fatigue failure due to the presence of "honeycomb" structure and microcracking. The mechanical damage was from contact of the connecting rod with the crankshaft thrust faces, and the "honeycomb" structure was most likely a result of overheating during the forging process. The crankshaft had been installed new in the engine in 2001,and two years later was modified with 11:1 compression ratio pistons. As a result of this and other modifications, engine power was increased by 30 percent. Due to the fact that these modifications altered the engine's original certification criteria; the engine was re-classified as an experimental. The serial number of the fractured crankshaft was listed in Lycoming's Mandatory Service Bulletin (SB) 569A, titled Crankshaft Retirement for Certain Lycoming Engines, which recommended the crankshafts be replaced at the first instance the engine crankcase was separated or no later than February 21, 2009. The SB was generated as a result of several subsurface fatigue failures of similar crankshafts used on higher horsepower engines (greater than 300 HP). Those crankshafts were subject to Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2002-04-51, which would have required them to be removed before the date of this accident. Since the engine was classified as experimental, the crankshaft did not have to be removed as a result of this guidance. The AD and SB were issued as a result of a slight change in the specified composition of the crankshaft material, which was a small vanadium addition intended to lower the tempering temperature and reduce warpage; however, this change increased the susceptibility to "honeycomb" and microcracking when slightly over-heated during the forging process. The "honeycomb" and microstructure significantly reduced fatigue properties. The loss of fatigue life was most pronounced in the higher HP applications, and the experimental modifications made to this engine would have made the crankshaft more susceptible to fatigue fracture.
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: airline transport pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 18,700 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 57 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days; 12,500 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: June 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 524.5 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, March 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 1,650 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Textron Lycoming AEIO-540-D2A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: JFX Jasper AL at 11:38 am
- Destination: Y76 Des Plains MO
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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 N181DM 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.