A beautiful day in the magnificent Lake District of the UK; perfect for wandering the skies in a Yak 50, until the oil pressure drops and the engine stops. This video shows the importance of receiving good foundation training when getting your Warbirds rating: what you learn first will stick to your memory.
If you learn poor habits, or if your understanding of your aircraft’s systems is too vague, it will be extremely difficult to de-learn so that you can re-learn the right way. The flying environment in a Warbird is pretty different to your average club’s aircraft, so it is important to receive training from an organization who has adapted its pedagogy to maximize efficiency for Warbirds pilots and prepare them to anything coming down the track, like display flying and formation flying. Contact us to find out more: www.Love4aviation.com
Details: The aircraft was on a local flight from Carlisle Airport when the engine failed due to loss of oil pressure. The windscreen became partially obscured with an oil film but the pilot was able to make a forced landing in a field, during which the aircraft was substantially damaged. He vacated the aircraft unaided, but later attended hospital as his injuries became more apparent. On examining the engine, the pilot identified that the oil pressure adjustment valve was missing from the oil scavenge pump housing. It was found in the lower cowling with no evidence of the expected wire locking. He believed that the valve had worked loose and fallen out during the accident flight, causing the oil loss. The aircraft had recently undergone extensive maintenance at EGMJ which included an overhaul of the oil scavenge pump assembly. Initial flights following this work revealed a small oil leak in the area of the pump, which at the time, was thought to be have been remedied by an engineer tightening the small vertical bolts adjacent to the pressure adjustment valve.
Pilot: Andy Wilson
Aircraft: Yak-50
Location: Bothel, Cumbria