Grumman G-164 N554Y accident near Michigan, North Dakota

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to abort the takeoff roll following a noticeable loss of engine power due to low engine compression and a magneto failure.

NTSB analysis

The pilot stated that, during an attempted takeoff of an aerial application flight, the engine did not appear to be producing as much power as he anticipated. When the airplane became airborne, about 300 feet before the departure end of the runway, it experienced a total loss of engine power. The pilot lowered the nose and the airplane impacted the runway's overrun area and nosed over; it came to rest inverted about 300 feet past the departure end of the runway. A postaccident examination by Federal Aviation Administration inspectors revealed that they were unable to obtain compression in two engine cylinders. They additionally found that a magneto was inoperative; no other anomalies were found.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN11CA071 for the full record.