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| Date: | Friday 3 January 2020 |
| Time: | 11:55 |
| Type: | Maxair Drifter XP-R503L |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | JR0251 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | Nagama, Gusukube, Miyako city, Okinawa prefecture -
 Japan
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Illegal Flight |
| Departure airport: | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
On the day of the accident, at an airfield in Miyakojima City, Okinawa Prefecture, the pilot inspected the aircraft's exterior before the flight, and checked the flight control system and engine speed. The aircraft then flew a circumnavigation pattern (a circular pattern within a 3-kilometer radius of the airfield) twice.
At around 11:45, the pilot sat in the front seat and the passenger sat in the back seat and fastened their seat belts for the third circumnavigation flight, and the aircraft took off in an east-northeast direction from the airfield. After the aircraft flew one circumnavigation pattern, the pilot performed a low pass over the runway and attempted to increase engine power by operating the throttle lever to continue climbing. However, the pilot was unable to move the throttle lever forward (to increase engine speed) from a position where the engine speed had reached approximately 4,500 rpm, and was unable to achieve the engine speed (6,000 rpm) required for climbing. At that time, the aircraft was located approximately 60-70 m east-northeast of the runway, at an altitude of approximately 100 ft above the ground. The pilot once reduced the engine power and tried to increase it again, but was unable to move the throttle lever forward from the position where the engine speed reached about 4,500 rpm, and was unable to obtain the required engine speed. According to the pilot's statement, when he tried to move the throttle lever forward, he felt something catching, but he did not feel anything pulling him in the opposite direction. The throttle could be operated from the rear seat, but according to the passenger's statement, the passenger was either holding onto the overhead strap attached to the rear seat of the aircraft or placing his hands on his lap during the flight, and a video taken by an onlooker showed him holding onto the strap with his right hand during the low pass.
The pilot gave up on the climb and tried to return to the same airfield, but determined that it was too low and dangerous to make a 180° turn to return, so he looked down and saw a road with no people or vehicles passing by and no trees or other objects on the side of the road, and decided to make this the target point for an emergency landing. The pilot flew toward the landing site while maintaining the engine speed at 4,500 rpm, taking care not to stall the aircraft, but the aircraft gradually lost altitude and the left wing of the aircraft collided with a tree on the side of the road about 180 m before the landing site, causing the aircraft to fall to the ground. The tree that collided with the aircraft was about 3 m above ground.
The pilot was uninjured, but the passenger sustained serious injuries, including a coccyx fracture. Both wings and the aircraft frame were broken.
After the fall, the aircraft was transported to the same airfield by the pilot and personnel from the same airfield who rushed to the scene. The aircraft was then disposed of by the pilot.
Analysis:
(1) Situation at the time of the accident
The aircraft decided to make an emergency landing because the engine speed did not increase during the climb from the low pass, but the pilot was unable to reach the emergency landing target point due to a greater loss of altitude due to insufficient thrust than the pilot had anticipated, and the left wing collided with a tree on the side of the road in front of the aircraft, causing it to fall to the ground and sustain damage, with the passenger being seriously injured.
(2) Engine Condition
The reason why the aircraft's engine speed did not increase is thought to be due to a foreign object being caught in the throttle lever, an object being caught in the link rod of the throttle lever, or damage to the cable connecting the throttle lever and the engine's throttle valve. However, since the aircraft, including the parts in question, had been disposed of after the accident, it was not possible to investigate the actual items, and it was not possible to clarify the condition of the throttle lever, the cable connecting the throttle valve, and the connection status of the throttle lever and the throttle valve.
(3) Thorough compliance with laws and regulations
It is recognized that the aircraft was flown without obtaining the necessary permission under the Aviation Act. To ensure the safe flight of an ultralight aircraft, the requirements for obtaining these permits must be met and the conditions attached to those permits must be observed. The aircraft should not have been flown without obtaining the permits required under the Aviation Act.
Furthermore, after the accident occurred, the accident was not promptly reported to the Civil Aviation Bureau, and the aircraft involved was disposed of. When an aviation accident occurs, it is necessary to report it promptly in accordance with the provisions of the Aviation Act, and to properly preserve the relevant site and aircraft, etc., as far as possible, for the subsequent investigation of the cause.
Cause:
It is believed that the engine speed did not increase during flight, and the aircraft was no longer able to obtain the thrust necessary to continue flight, causing it to enter a descent, with the left wing colliding with a tree just short of the target landing point, causing the aircraft to fall to the ground, damaging the aircraft and causing serious injuries to the passengers.
Sources:
https://jtsb.mlit.go.jp/jtsb/aircraft/detail2.php?id=2274
https://jtsb.mlit.go.jp/aircraft/rep-acci/AA2021-5-2-JR0251.pdf
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 21-May-2020 11:49 | isamuel | Added |
| 03-Jul-2025 16:04 | yukipara3 | Updated [Time, Nature, Source, Damage, Narrative, Category, ] |
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