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DEN91LA025

1990-12-15 · ROSWELL, New Mexico, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport ROW

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

LOW CYLINDER COMPRESSION AND FOULED SPARK PLUG.

Factual narrative

THE PILOT SAID THAT AFTER TAKEOFF, AT AN ALTITUDE OF APPROXIMATELY 150 FEET, THE ENGINE STARTED RUNNING ROUGH. HE SAID THAT ENGINE PERFORMANCE CONTINUED TO DETERIORATE AND HE HAD TO MAKE A FORCED LANDING. THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK THE GROUND HARD AND SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE COWLING AND THE MAIN LANDING GEAR. SUBSEQUENT EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED ONE CYLINDER HAD FOULED SPARK PLUGS AND ALL CYLINDERS EXCEPT ONE HAD LOW COMPRESSION. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1990_DEN91LA025.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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