Amateur-built ULTRA-PUP accident near Lyman, Maine, October 6, 2012
On October 6, 2012 at about 12:39 pm local time, a amateur-built ULTRA-PUP, registered N3073X, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Lyman, Maine. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The accumulation of ice in the automotive engine’s carburetor, which resulted in a loss of engine power.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 6, 2012 · about 12:39 pm local time
- Place
- Lyman, Maine · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built ULTRA-PUP
- Registration
- N3073X · no longer on the register · serial 01
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
About 20 minutes into the cross-country flight, the pilot of the experimental amateur-built airplane detected a vibration of the airplane’s engine that “didn’t sound good,” and noticed a drop in the rpm of the automotive-conversion engine. He immediately applied carburetor heat, but the engine continued to lose power until the airplane could no longer maintain altitude and began to descend from its cruise altitude of 1,500 feet above ground level. The pilot performed a forced landing into the trees below, substantially damaging the airplane’s fuselage, wings, and empennage. Postaccident examination of the airplane, its engine, and its fuel system revealed no evidence of preimpact malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Although the fuel system was compromised by impact damage, the fuel that remained in the system was absent of contamination. According to a carburetor icing probability chart published by the Federal Aviation Administration, the temperature and dew point reported at an airport located about 6 nautical miles from the accident site were conducive to “serious icing at cruise power.”
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
- Loss of engine power (partial) during enroute (cruise) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during emergency descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Temp/humidity/pressure › Conducive to carburetor icing › Effect on equipment
- Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine fuel and control › Fuel control/carburetor › Design
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 7,000 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 7 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: August 4, 2009
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 100 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, November 4, 2011
- Maximum gross weight: 1,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Volkswagen VMW (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3B4 Eliot ME at 12:30 pm
- Destination: IWI Wiscasset ME
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.79 inHg
- Observation at 12:35 pm from SFM, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.