Register

Throttled

Engine failure. Take a breath and collect yourself. Hopefully you have a flow memorized to try and restore power, and maybe it includes the fuel selector, mixture control, boost pump, magnetos and more. But what about the throttle?

Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • The author complicated a light sport aircraft by modifying its engine and relocating the throttle, straying from its original simple design.
  • Despite noticing warning signs of sloppy work and a partially functional throttle after the modifications, the author chose to ignore these issues.
  • This design flaw led to an incident during landing where the throttle lever unexpectedly caused the engine to accelerate, resulting in a ground loop and highlighting the dangers of over-complication and neglected safety concerns.
See a mistake? Contact us.

Ipurchased a popular light sport that had been sitting in a hangar after the builder injured his back. We both walked away happy with the sale, but I soon decided it needed an engine with more horsepower. I worked with an A&P and builder to coordinate the engine upgrade, and we agreed on a number of other projects, one of which involved relocating the throttle.

This was my first mistake, not leaving well enough alone. Clearly the factory knew a simple, foolproof throttle easily reached by both pilots was the way to go. Fabricating a dual-throttle so both pilots can fly with one hand on the stick and the other on the throttle ended up introducing problems that didn’t exist before.

Ready to Sell Your Aircraft?

List your airplane on AircraftForSale.com and reach qualified buyers.

List Your Aircraft
AircraftForSale Logo | FLYING Logo
Pilot in aircraft
Sign-up for newsletters & special offers!

Get the latest stories & special offers delivered directly to your inbox.

SUBSCRIBE