Pilot Debrief

PIPER PA28 near Bladenboro, NC — 2017-11-18

Final reportERA18LA026
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Date
2017-11-18
Location
Bladenboro, NC, USA
Airport
3W6
Aircraft
PIPER PA28
Registration
N8758N
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Initial climb

Probable cause

A loss of engine power due to carburetor icing and the presence of an insect nest in the carburetor heat control box that prevented the pilot’s application of carburetor heat from restoring engine power.

NTSB narrative

The private pilot stated that, after a go-around, he was on the downwind leg of the airport traffic pattern when the engine lost partial power. He applied carburetor heat, but it did not restore full power to the engine. With the airplane unable to reach the runway, he performed an off-airport landing to a field, which resulted in substantial damage to the wing leading edges and engine mounts. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that there was an insect nest in the carburetor heat control box that prevented it from functioning properly. The examination revealed no evidence of other preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the engine that would have precluded normal operation. The weather conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to the formation of serious carburetor icing at glide engine power settings. It is likely that the initial loss of engine power was the result of an accumulation of ice in the carburetor that could not be removed by using carburetor heat due to the insect nest.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Engine power loss
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have aborted the go-around after initial power loss.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Photos
  • 3 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents3

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