177Mf LLC PITTS MODEL 12 accident near Bluffdale, Utah, May 4, 2014
On May 4, 2014 at about 1:45 am local time, a 2009 177Mf LLC PITTS MODEL 12, registered N177MF, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (descent) near Bluffdale, Utah. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A complete loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because of insufficient evidence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 4, 2014 · about 1:45 am local time
- Place
- Bluffdale, Utah · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- 177Mf LLC PITTS MODEL 12, built 2009
- Registration
- N177MF · registry record · serial 299
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The private pilot had recently purchased the experimental airplane, and the flight was the second leg of his cross-country trip to fly the airplane home from the purchase location. After the first leg, the pilot topped off the main and auxiliary (wing) fuel tanks, which, according to the pilot's operating handbook (POH) for the airplane, provided a total usable fuel quantity of 53 gallons. After flying about 3.5 hours, when the airplane was about 20 miles short of the planned destination, the engine lost total power, and the pilot was unable to restart it. During a forced landing in a field, the airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted. When the airplane was righted during recovery, about 4 to 5 gallons of fluid drained from the area where the main fuel tank and the smoke oil tank were mounted; however, it was not determined whether the fluid was fuel or a mixture of fuel and smoke oil. The auxiliary tank was breached, and no determination of its postimpact fuel quantity could be made. The engine was a highly modified aftermarket version of one of two different models produced by the original engine manufacturer, a 360-horsepower (hp) model and a 400-hp model, and no specific fuel burn chart for the modified engine had been developed. The pilot's flight planning, which was based on fuel burn rates for a 360-hp engine, indicated that the flight would consume about 45 gallons of fuel. Calculations using the POH fuel burn rates, which were for a 400-hp engine, indicated that the flight would consume between 51 and 58 gallons, depending on the power setting. Because the auxiliary fuel tank was not equipped with any quantity indication system, and the main tank fuel quantity indicator was difficult for the pilot to see, the pilot used an engine information system (EIS) to determine the fuel state of the airplane. The EIS used a pilot-entered initial fuel quantity and a sensed fuel flow rate to calculate the fuel remaining. Although the pilot reported that the EIS indicated that about 11 gallons of fuel was on board at the time of the power loss, the investigation was unable to determine the accuracy of that EIS-calculated quantity. Based on the available information, the power loss was likely the result of either an ignition or fuel problem. However, due to damage to the airplane that precluded a complete examination of the ignition and fuel systems, a lack of design and construction information, and the inability to accurately determine the airplane's postimpact fuel quantity, the reason for the loss of engine power could not be determined.
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
- Loss of engine power (total) during enroute (descent) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Not determined › Not determined › (general) › (general) › Unknown/Not determined
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,868 hours in all; 8 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 28 in the last 30 days; 3,753 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 6, 2013
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 146 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, June 22, 2014
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Vendenyev M14P (piston); 596 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DLS The Dalles OR at 10:00 pm
- Destination: PVU Provo UT
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 14,000 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.84 inHg
- Observation at 1:55 am from PVU, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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 WPR14LA185.