Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 172 near Clearfield, PA — 2022-09-03

Final reportERA22LA411
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Date
2022-09-03
Location
Clearfield, PA, USA
Airport
FIG
Aircraft
CESSNA 172
Registration
N9619H
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Initial climb

Probable cause

A sudden partial loss of engine power for undetermined reasons, which resulted in an off-airport landing.

NTSB narrative

During initial climb, about 300 ft above ground level, the airplane’s engine began shaking and lost partial power. The pilot lowered the nose and saw that the airplane was still over the runway but too close to the end to land on the remaining runway. He made a “hard” left turn in an attempt to land on the runway in the opposite direction. He also turned the fuel selector to off in preparation for an off-airport impact. The engine subsequently lost all power (due to the fuel being turned off), and the airplane impacted a field, coming to rest upright in a wooded area at the edge of the field. A postaccident compression check performed when the engine was cold revealed no compression on the No. 1 cylinder and low compression on the No. 3 cylinder; however, the engine was subsequently started and run at idle power, with no anomalies noted. After shutdown, removal of the Nos. 1 and 3 cylinders revealed scoring on the No. 1 piston skirt and cylinder wall. The scoring was consistent with material entering the cylinder as a result of tappet to camshaft wearing, which also would have affected the intake and exhaust valves opening and closing properly. While this condition may have reduced the engine’s ability to produce full takeoff power; it would not have resulted in the sudden loss of engine performance described by the pilot. Given the engine’s subsequent normal operation postaccident, the reason for the partial loss of engine power could not be determined.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Engine power loss
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have aborted the takeoff after engine began shaking.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

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

Docket documents5

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