Amateur-built Glastar 41 accident near Snow Shoe, Pennsylvania, November 11, 2006
On November 11, 2006 at about 2:45 am local time, a amateur-built Glastar 41, registered N441AV, was substantially damaged in an accident near Snow Shoe, Pennsylvania. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The builder's improper installation of an additional alternator. Contributing to the accident were the night lighting conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 11, 2006 · about 2:45 am local time
- Place
- Snow Shoe, Pennsylvania · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Glastar 41
- Registration
- N441AV · no longer on the register · serial 041
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While in cruise flight, the engine lost power, and the pilot performed a nighttime forced landing to a wooded area. A subsequent examination of the engine revealed a loose timing belt, and the idler pulley, upon which the cam belt would normally have run, was missing. There was also a broken stud in the location where the idler pulley should have been. The loose cam belt resulted in the camshafts being out of timing, allowing the valves to contact each other and bend. The original attach bolt for the missing idler pulley had been replaced by the airplane builder, who was not the current owner, with a 6-inch stud to mount an additional alternator. The mounting stud had been sleeved with a spacer to maintain a mounting distance between the alternator and the engine. The weight of the alternator and its mounting distance from the engine resulted in excessive stress to the mounting stud, which eventually broke.
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: 262 hours in all; 94 in this make and model; 48 in the last 90 days; 48 in the last 30 days; 216 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
Crew member
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 162 hours in all; 82 in this make and model
- Last flight review: October 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: condition inspection, December 1, 2005
- Maximum gross weight: 1,960 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Subaru 2.5L (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LDJ Linden NJ
- Destination: TDZ Toledo OH
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.94 inHg
- Observation at 2:21 am from UNV, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.