Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 180 near Princeton, OR — 2020-10-02

Final reportWPR21LA008
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Date
2020-10-02
Location
Princeton, OR, USA
Aircraft
CESSNA 180
Registration
N8678X
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Go-around

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to enrichen the mixture, which resulted in a partial loss of engine power.

NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that while completing a low reconnaissance over a road, about 100 feet above ground level (agl), he added full throttle. The engine rpm temporarily increased, but immediately thereafter, the engine “coughed” and was only producing partial power. During the subsequent emergency landing, the landing gear broke off and the airplane sustained damage to the left wing, horizontal stabilizer, and elevator. A postaccident examination revealed no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The mixture knob was located at a very lean setting and the pilot stated that he may have forgotten to enrich the mixture from its cruise setting. The engine likely was not able to produce full power due to the excessively lean mixture setting.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Fuel management
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have enriched the fuel mixture before the go-around.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • 2 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents2

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