# Accident 19970824023439A: Cessna 170, Elk City, ID, August 24, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 24, 1997, 17:00 local time
- Place: Elk City, ID
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 45.7991° N, 115.5098° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=45.7991&lon=-115.5098&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3964V, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3964V-2012-11-14) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 170 (registry code 2072302, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-170) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental C145 series (registry code 17012, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-c145-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 170
- Reported engine: CONT C1452
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,360 total, 445 in this make and model, 42 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB SEA97LA195](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA97LA195) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970824023439A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(.4)WHILE IN CRUISE OVER MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN, THE PILOT NOTICED A DROP IN OIL PRESSURE FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY ENGINE SEIZURE. THE PILOT INITIATED A FORCE LANDING INTO RUGGED TERRAIN AND THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED. EXAM OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THAT THE NO. 6 CONNECTING ROD HAD SEPARATED DUE TO LACK OF LUBRICATION AND BEARING SEIZURE. NO EVIDENCE OF LEAKING OIL WAS FOUND ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE AIRPLANE. THE PILOT STATED THAT SHE CHECKED THE OIL LEVEL PRIOR TO THE FLIGHT AND THAT IT WAS ADEQUATE. THE OIL WAS LAST CHANGED ABOUT ONE MONTH PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. ACCORDING TO A MAINTENANCE LOG ENTRY AND THE ACCIDENT TACHOMETER TIME, THE AIRPLANE HAD FLOWN ABOUT 23 HOURS SINCE THE OIL CHANGE. THE PILOT STATED THAT THE AIRPLANE COULD NOT HAVE BEEN FLOWN FOR MORE THAN ABOUT 8 HOURS SINCE THE INSPECTION. THE RUBBER SEAL AROUND THE NO. 6 PUSH ROD TUBE WAS FOUND DETACHED AFTER IT WAS SALVAGED, BUT IT COULD NOT BE DETERMINED IF THIS WAS A PREIMPACT CONDITION. THE PUBLISHED USEABLE OIL QUANTITY FOR THE ENGINE IS 5.6 QTS. IN A 5-DEGREE NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE FOR THE LOSS OF ENGINE OIL COULD NOT BE DETERMINED.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB SEA97LA195](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA97LA195), Aug 24, 1997: Cessna 170 (N3964V), Elk City, ID, destroyed. Probable cause: Oil starvation of the engine due to undetermined reasons, which led to the failure and separation of a main bearing and a connecting rod. A factor contributing to the accident was the lack of…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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