Amateur-built Zodiac 601 XL N9881T accident near Coeur D'Alene, Idaho

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control after the engine experienced a loss of power. Contributing to the accident was the mixture control arm separating from the fuel metering valve shaft.

NTSB analysis

As the airplane departed on its maiden flight, witnesses reported hearing the engine "cut out" then start again before completely losing power. The airplane was subsequently observed in "a tight spiral" with its wings "pointing straight up and down" before impacting terrain and sliding into the side of a school building. The airplane came to rest in an inverted position. Fuel was detected at the accident site and there was no post crash fire. A Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness inspector reported that the carburetor's mixture control lever had separated from its mixture shaft, and that the carburetor's metering valve shaft appeared to have been slightly bent and grooved for some time.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for SEA08LA190 for the full record.