N602U

On April 24, 1996, about 1545 eastern daylight time, a Grumman G-164, N602U, was destroyed when it collided with trees during a forced landing after takeoff from the Robert J Miller Air Park, Toms River, New Jersey. The airline transport pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the aerial fire fighting flight. No flight plan had been filed for the local flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

In the NTSB form 6120.1/2, the pilot stated that he departed runway 24 at Toms River, in response to fight a brush fire. The airplane was in a climbing left turn, about 300 feet above the ground, when the engine lost total power. He dumped a 2,000 pound water load and performed a forced landing. During the forced landing, the airplane collided with trees and came to rest approximately 1 mile southeast of Toms River.

Examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Inspector did not disclose evidence of mechanical malfunctions with the airplane. Fuel was observed in the fuel tanks and gascolator, with no evidence of contamination. Also, an engine examination was conducted by Aero Engines-Inc., Los Angeles, California, under the supervision of an FAA Inspector. No evidence of mechanical malfunctions were found with the engine during the examination.

The pilot had a total flight experience of about 4,690 hours, of which 20 hours were in the accident airplane.