Amateur-built Loehle P-40 accident near Oregon City, Oregon, August 31, 2008
On August 31, 2008 at about 7:15 pm local time, a amateur-built Loehle P-40, registered N510JW, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute near Oregon City, Oregon. 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
The loss of total engine power due to a cold seizure.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 2008 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Oregon City, Oregon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Loehle P-40
- Registration
- N510JW · no longer on the register · serial P-40-151068888
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
About 30 minutes into the local flight while returning to the departure airport, the airplane's engine lost power. The pilot subsequently made a successful landing in a flat farm field. The pilot said that after adding about 2-1/2 gallons of fuel and "running it at various speeds and checking my gages," he departed for the 5 minute flight back to his original departure airport. The pilot reported that on about a 1-mile final to the runway, the engine lost power again, which required him to make a second forced landing. The airplane came to rest upright in a pond with its left wing separated. A post-accident examination revealed scuffing signature marks on the piston walls, which were consistent with a cold seizure condition. The engine manufacturer's Installation Manual specifies in its Safety Information section, in part, "This engine, by its design, is subject to sudden stoppage...Never fly the aircraft equipped with this engine at locations, airspeeds, altitude, or other circumstances from which a successful no-power landing cannot be made, after sudden engine stoppage...This is not a certificated aircraft engine."
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
- Powerplant sys/comp malf/fail during enroute
- Loss of engine power (total) during enroute defining event
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine (reciprocating) › Recip eng cyl section › Malfunction
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 698 hours in all; 38 in this make and model
- Last flight review: March 26, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 38 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, April 12, 2008; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 965 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 582 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Oregon City OR at 7:12 pm
- Destination: Oregon City OR
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,700 ft; a few clouds at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from PDX, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.
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.