18 Jul 2022: VANS RV10

18 Jul 2022: VANS RV10 (N910BW) — Unknown operator

No fatalities • Palatka, FL, United States

Probable cause

Total loss of engine power due to the improper installation of an electronic ignition system connector plug.

— NTSB Determination

Accident narrative

On July 18, 2022, at 0804 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur-built RV-10 airplane, N910BW, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Palatka, Florida. The pilot was seriously injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot stated that shortly after takeoff, the engine sputtered then lost total power. He was unable to return to the airport and made a forced landing to heavily wooded terrain, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage, both wings, and the tail section. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the cannon plug type circular connector that connected the electronic ignition wiring harness to the firewall was not locked, and the connector was partially engaged. The connector provided the connection between the wiring harness and the two electronic control units located on the cockpit side of the firewall. According to a representative of the manufacturer of the ignition system, if the firewall connector was not secure “…this would result in a single point failure of the entire ignition system.” A review of the airplane’s maintenance records revealed that the electronic ignition system was installed in October 2020. There were no subsequent entries that discussed maintenance of the ignition system since that date.

Contributing factors

  • Maintenance personnel
  • Incorrect service/maintenance

Conditions

Weather
VMC, wind 000/03kt, vis 8sm

Loading the flight search…

What you can do on Flight Finder

  • Search flights between any two airports with live fares.
  • By aircraft — pick a plane model (e.g. Boeing 787, Airbus A350) and see every route it flies from your origin.
  • Route map — click any airport worldwide to explore its destinations, or draw a radius to find nearby airports.
  • Global aviation safety — aviation accident database, 5,200+ records since 1980, with map and rankings by aircraft and operator.
  • NTSB safety feed — recent U.S. aviation accidents and incidents from the official NTSB CAROL database, updated daily.

Frequently asked questions

How do I search flights by aircraft type on FlightFinder?

Pick an aircraft model — Boeing 737, Airbus A320, A380, Boeing 787 Dreamliner and more — enter your origin airport, and FlightFinder shows every route that plane flies from there with live fares.

Which aircraft types can I filter by?

We support Boeing 737/747/757/767/777/787, the full Airbus A220/A319/A320/A321/A330/A340/A350/A380 family, Embraer E170/E175/E190/E195, Bombardier CRJ and Dash 8, and the ATR 42/72 turboprops.

Is FlightFinder free to use?

Search and schedules are free. Pro ($4.99/month, $39/year, or $99 one-time lifetime) unlocks the enriched flight card — on-time stats, CO₂ per passenger, amenities, live gate & weather — plus My Trips with push alerts.

Where does the route data come from?

Live schedules come from Amadeus, AeroDataBox and Travelpayouts. Observed routes (which aircraft actually flew a given city pair) are crowdsourced from adsb.lol ADS-B data under the Open Database License.