Amateur-built KR-2S accident near Glendale, Arizona, October 30, 2009
On October 30, 2009 at about 6:30 pm local time, a amateur-built KR-2S, registered N811RJ, was substantially damaged in an accident during initial climb near Glendale, Arizona (Glendale Municipal Airport). It was a flight test 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
A loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of a reduced fuel flow to the engine resulting from a misrouted fuel tank vent line, during initial climb.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 30, 2009 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Glendale, Arizona · Glendale Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built KR-2S
- Registration
- N811RJ · registry record · serial 001
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight test · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the experimental homebuilt airplane reported that this was its inaugural flight. The pilot reported that immediately after takeoff, at approximately 300 feet above ground level, the airspeed began to decrease. He lowered the airplane's nose to maintain airspeed when he then noticed that the engine's rpm was also decreasing. He performed a forced landing straight ahead, and during the roll out, the airplane impacted a berm. Both wings were displaced aft and the bottom of the fuselage was broken. The owner/builder of the airplane reported that the airplane's fuel tank was located between the firewall and the instrument panel. The fuel tank's vent line passed through the firewall into the engine compartment and terminated near the bottom of the aircraft. This was the same location that the engine's cooling air flow exited the engine compartment. The builder believed that the exiting airflow may have created a negative pressure in the fuel tank, which would have reduced the fuel flow to the engine during flight. Two Federal Aviation Administration inspectors examined the experimental Corvair 164 CID engine with the pilot. No anomalies that would have prevented normal engine operation was found.
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
- Fuel starvation during initial climb defining event
- Loss of engine power (total) during initial climb
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine fuel and control › (general) › Malfunction
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Fuel system › (general) › Design
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Terrain › (general) › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,612 hours in all; 85 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 2,534 as pilot in command; 1,558 on instruments
- Last flight review: September 14, 2009
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, October 30, 2009; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 980 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Corvair 164 CID (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GEU Glendale AZ at 6:30 pm
- Destination: GEU Glendale AZ
- Flight plan: not recorded
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 14°F (-10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 6:47 pm from GEU
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.