Amateur-built VELOCITY XL/RG accident near Fort Pierce, Florida, June 15, 1999
On June 15, 1999 at about 2:04 pm local time, a amateur-built VELOCITY XL/RG, registered N19DW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fort Pierce, Florida. 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The owner/pilot mechanic's failure to adjust the newly installed wing fuel caps resulting in the loss of engine power while in cruise flight due to fuel starvation and the subsequent collision with transmission wires while attempting a forced landing to a highway. Factors in the accident were the failure of the vent system to adequately compensate for the pressure differential created and the failure of the pilot to monitor fuel balance.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 15, 1999 · about 2:04 pm local time
- Place
- Fort Pierce, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VELOCITY XL/RG VELOCITY X
- Registration
- N19DW · registry record · serial 3RX026
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While maneuvering in cruise flight, the pilot/builder of the experimental airplane noticed a fluctuating fuel pressure gage and then the engine quit. The pilot executed a forced landing onto an interstate highway. Postcrash examination revealed an empty right wing fuel tank and no other abnormality of the fuel system and engine. Postcrash start and operation of the engine was satisfactory. The pilot/builder revealed that ever since he changed fuel filler caps, two flights before the accident flight, he had experienced fuel tank imbalance problems. A factory test pilot, using wing tank caps of various tightness adjustments, revealed that gravity feed from wing tank to sump tank could be interrupted if the cap were allowed to fit loosely and allow siphoning due to upper wing surface low pressure while inflight. As a result of the testing, the factory has increased the size of the fuel vent plumbing, eliminated the sump tank vent in favor of an air bleed, 'burp valve', and sent out alerts to all kit owners about fuel starvation resulting from loose-fitting caps.
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
- Flight time: 823 hours in all; 117 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 777 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 117 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 8, 1999; 117 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,750 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-E4C5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HWO Hollywood FL at 1:30 pm
- Destination: Fort Pierce FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 2,300 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:04 pm from FPR, 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 N19DW the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 MIA99LA184.