Event WPR20LA291

Factual narrative

On August 28, 2020, about 1100 mountain standard time, a Cessna TU206B, N3422L, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Tusayan, Arizona. The pilot sustained a minor injury. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 skydiving flight. The pilot reported that while conducting skydive operations near, Grand Canyon National Park, Airport (GCN), Grand Canyon, Arizona and after releasing several jumpers, he began his descent with power settings of 15 inches manifold pressure, propeller 2,200 rpm, and a fuel burn of 7.5 gallons per hour. The pilot further reported that he was subsequently cleared to enter a midfield left downwind for runway 21, and when established on an extended downwind, the GCN control tower cleared the pilot to land on runway 21. The pilot opined that at 7,500 ft mean sea level, he configured the airplane for landing, with cowl flaps open, mixture full rich, and propeller control full forward; however, there was no response from the engine. The pilot stated that as runway 21 was unreachable, he set up to land on Highway 64, which was located about 1,600 ft east of the approach end of runway 21. The pilot further stated that in preparation to lan,d he switched from the right to the left fuel tank, turned on the high and low pressure fuel pumps, and tried the starter, as the propeller was windmilling. However, he continued to receive no response from the engine. The pilot mentioned that prior to touching down, he made a right banking turn to align with the highway, during which the airplane’s right wing collided with a light pole. This caused the airplane to flip over and come to rest inverted in the middle of the two-lane highway, substantially damaging both wings, the fuselage, and vertical stabilizer. A postaccident examination of the engine and airframe revealed the engine remained attached to the airframe via three of the four engine mounts. The No. 5 cylinder was impact damaged. No evidence of any fuel system breaches or damage to the fuel system was observed nor were there any mechanical anomalies with the engine noted that would have precluded normal operation. When the airframe fuel filter was removed, it was observed to contain a small amount of liquid and debris within the bowl. The liquid was tested with water finding paste and with positive results. Additionally, when the fuel manifold was disassembled, it exposed a liquid within the fuel manifold housing with a small amount of debris within the screen. When tested with water finding paste, the results were positive for water. Further, when the fuel pump was removed and disassembled, liquid was recovered from one of the fuel pump cavities and tested with water finding paste with positive results. Also, when the fuel inlet screen was removed, it was observed mostly clogged with what appeared to be dirt and corrosion. The airplane was equipped with a JPI-EDM 830 engine monitoring system. Data downloaded from the device revealed that the engine did not sustain a catastrophic event that would have resulted in the loss of engine power. The pilot reported that while abeam the runway numbers on a left downwind in preparation to land after performing a skydiving drop, the engine lost power and then totally quit. The pilot performed a forced landing to a two-lane highway. While maneuvering to land, the airplane collided with a light pole and came to rest inverted, substantially damaging the airplane.   Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed water- and debris-contaminated fuel in the airframe fuel filter bowl and water-contaminated fuel in the fuel manifold and fuel pump. Also, the fuel inlet screen was mostly clogged with what appeared to be dirt and corrosion. The engine most likely lost power due to fuel contamination, as the fuel filter, fuel manifold, and fuel pump all tested positive for water. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• — Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid condition
• — Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid level