Amateur-built KITFOX IV accident near Carnation, Washington, May 25, 1999
On May 25, 1999, a amateur-built KITFOX IV, registered N149BT, was substantially damaged in an accident near Carnation, Washington. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Loss of engine power due to a cracked engine impulse line, which disabled the fuel pump. A factor was the intentional ground loop by the pilot.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 25, 1999
- Place
- Carnation, Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built KITFOX IV
- Registration
- N149BT · registry record · serial 1499
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While in a cruise flight configuration the aircraft's engine started to lose power and eventually quit. The pilot executed a forced landing in a crowned hay field. Upon touchdown, the aircraft bounced, momentarily became airborne, then touched down a second time. In an effort to stop, the pilot intentionally ground-looped the aircraft. The aircraft came to rest in a irrigation canal that paralleled the hay field. The aircraft's main landing gear and both wings were substantially damaged. A post accident inspection of the engine revealed a large crack in the impulse line running from the engine's crankcase to the pulse fuel pump. A technical representative from Rotax Engines stated that a breech of this type in the impulse line would result in a failure of the pulse fuel pump.
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: 1,085 hours in all; 715 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 1,085 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 727 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 30, 1998; 663 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,100 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 582, 2 STROKE (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: WN41 Sequim WA at 11:00 pm
- Destination: WA38 Monroe WA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
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 SEA99LA071.