Amateur-built SEA REY accident near Ashland, Virginia, May 22, 1999
On May 22, 1999 at about 6:12 pm local time, a amateur-built SEA REY, registered N100RZ, was destroyed in an accident near Ashland, Virginia (Mayers Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
was a loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 22, 1999 · about 6:12 pm local time
- Place
- Ashland, Virginia · Mayers Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SEA REY
- Registration
- N100RZ · registry record · serial 100
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The home-built airplane, equipped with a 2 cycle non-certificated engine, departed on a test flight after installation of a new engine ignition part. The part was installed in an attempt to resolve a recurrence of engine power interruptions. The pilot reported the airplane climbed to approximately 100 feet above the trees at the departure end of the runway when it experienced a partial loss of engine power followed shortly by a complete loss of engine power. Maintenance records revealed a mechanic examined the airplane in the month prior to the accident to 'determine where loss of power is from.' After the work, a note was attached to the work order describing a loss of power during climb out, air bubbles in the fuel line, and the customer's need to investigate the fuel system further. The mechanic noted that the bubbles disappeared from the line when the booster pump was engaged. Examination of the wreckage revealed a chaffed fuel supply line to the engine driven pump. The engine started and ran in a test cell after the accident without interruption.
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; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 347 hours in all; 242 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 360 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 15, 1998; 47 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,350 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 912 UL (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: NONE at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 2,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,500 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:54 pm from RIC, 16 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.
Other NTSB records under N100RZ 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.