N840DFDiamond Aircraft Ind DA20-A1 · 1995

On January 14, 2011, at 1434 eastern standard time, a Diamond Aircraft DA20-A1, N840DF, was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a total loss of engine power after takeoff from Pompano Beach Airpark (PMP), Pompano Beach, Florida. The certificated private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local personal flight, which was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

The pilot stated that the purpose of the flight was to perform three touch-and-go takeoffs and landings at PMP. She observed no discrepancies during her preflight inspection of the airplane, and stated that the airplane contained 9 gallons of fuel. Upon starting, the engine ran roughly, so she shut down the engine and restarted it. The engine ran smoothly on the second start attempt. The pilot departed runway 10 and performed the first landing, with no anomalies noted. The pilot then applied full engine power to take off again. Approximately 100 feet above the runway, the engine experienced a total loss of power. The pilot performed a forced landing to a grassy area adjacent to the runway, and during the landing roll, the airplane's nose landing gear struck a berm, which spun the airplane, collapsed the nose landing gear, and resulted in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The airplane's horizontal stabilizer was also substantially damaged. The engine was retained for examination at a later date.

The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land. Her most recent Federal Aviation Administration second-class medical certificate was issued in October, 2009. Her most recent flight review was conducted in October, 2010, in the accident airplane make and model. She reported 83 hours total flight time at the time of the accident, of which 79 hours were in the accident airplane make and model.

The airplane was manufactured in 1995, and was equipped with a 81-hp Rotax 912-F3 reciprocating engine. The airplane's most recent annual inspection was completed on December 5, 2010, at an aircraft total time (TT) of 2,908.3 hours, with 1,450.1 hours since the most recent engine overhaul. According to the inspection entry in the airplane's maintenance log, engine maintenance performed during the annual inspection included installing new spark plugs and removing, repairing, and reinstalling the #3 exhaust stack. The engine's oil filter was cut open and inspected, with no contamination found.

The 1453 weather observation at PMP included winds from 60 degrees at 10 knots, 10 miles visibility, few clouds at 4,500 feet, scattered clouds at 6,000 feet, temperature 19 degrees C, dew point -1 degrees C, and an altimeter setting of 30.22 inches of mercury.

On February 10, 2011, a Federal Aviation Administration inspector performed an operational test of the engine. He stated that the engine started on the first attempt, and ran for 15 minutes with no malfunctions or anomalies.