Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 152 near Rockford, IL — 2012-08-17

Final reportCEN12CA599
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Date
2012-08-17
Location
Rockford, IL, USA
Aircraft
CESSNA 152
Registration
N152BA
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

A partial loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination of the engine revealed no anomalies.

NTSB narrative

While on a visual approach to the runway during the instructional flight, the engine lost partial power. The flight instructor reported that the engine was operating normally and then the engine rpm abruptly decreased from 2,200 to about 1,300. The carburetor heat was in the OFF position for the approach. The flight instructor's efforts to regain engine power were unsuccessful. Unable to make a landing at the airport, the instructor executed a forced landing to a field. The airplane touched down short of the airport, nosed over, and came to rest inverted. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the vertical stabilizer and rudder were bent; no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation were identified. The engine was test run at various power settings with no anomalies noted. Although a carburetor icing probability chart revealed that the ambient temperature and dew point at the time of the accident favored serious carburetor icing at glide power, the pilot reported that the engine was not at glide power when the power loss occurred. Accordingly, the investigation was not able to identify the reason for the power loss.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • 5 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents5

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