What happened
On the morning of 24 November 2024, a pilot was operating a Windlass Aquilla weight-shift controlled trike, registration ZU-BUI, on a private flight departing from Ballito Microlight Airfield in KwaZulu-Natal. The flight was intended to be a local circuit under visual meteorological conditions.
After taking off from Runway 18 and reaching an altitude of approximately 850 feet, the pilot initiated a left turn. During this maneuver, the aircraft began experiencing intense engine vibrations. This vibration was so severe that the carburettors were dislodged from the fuel intake, leading to immediate fuel starvation and engine stoppage. The pilot was able to glide the aircraft back to the same runway, performing a successful forced landing. There were no injuries and no damage to the aircraft.
The investigation
An investigation into the mechanical failure focused on the engine's exhaust system. A post-incident inspection by the pilot and a subsequent assessment by a Rotax-approved engineer revealed that a portion of the exhaust outlet pipe had broken off during flight. The missing component was not recovered.
Technical examination of the remaining exhaust hardware showed that the break occurred at a welded joint. The investigation established that the failure was an isolated incident, as no similar failures had been previously recorded in the Rotax exhaust systems examined.