Amateur-built VENTURE MODEL 20 accident near Madera, California, October 12, 2000
On October 12, 2000 at about 11:45 pm local time, a amateur-built VENTURE MODEL 20, registered N353, was substantially damaged in an accident near Madera, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The mechanical failure of a fuel sump tank check valve, during takeoff initial climb, that resulted in fuel starvation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 12, 2000 · about 11:45 pm local time
- Place
- Madera, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VENTURE MODEL 20 VENTURE MO
- Registration
- N353 · registry record · serial AT-7
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Seconds after the pilot took off in his experimental airplane, the engine experienced a partial loss of power. The pilot made a forced landing on a rural road and collided with a pole during rollout. An examination of the airplane revealed that a check valve in its fuel sump tank was stuck in mostly the closed position. This malfunction resulted in engine fuel starvation.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,700 hours in all; 90 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 90 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 12, 2000; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-550-N6B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: MAE CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 147°F (64°C), dew point 122°F (50°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from MAE, 4 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 N353 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.