# Accident 19980919034569A: Cessna 152, Burlington, NC, September 19, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: September 19, 1998, 20:00 local time - Place: Burlington, NC - Airport: Burlington Municipal Airport - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Climb - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 35.8499° N, 79.5707° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.8499&lon=-79.5707&mi=10 - Aircraft: N48195, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N48195-1998-11-06) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 152 (registry code 2071835, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-152) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 152 - Reported engine: LYC O235L2C - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 200 total, 150 in this make and model, 10 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB MIA98LA249](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98LA249) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980919034569A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. PILOT HAD MADE SEVERAL PATTERNS TO RUNWAY 6 AT BUY. PILOT STATED HE HAD BEEN PRACTICING "DEAD STICK" LANDINGS. HE STATED HE HAD NOT USED CARBURETOR HEAT AT ANY TIME IN THE FLIGHT BECAUSE THE LEVER WAS DIFFICULT TO PULL OUT. AFTER A TOUCH AND GO ON RUNWAY 6, THE PILOT WAS CLIMBING OUT ON HIS WAY BACK TO PERSON COUNTY AIRPORT WHEN THE ENGINE BEGAN TO SURGE AND WOULD NOT MAINTAIN RPM IN EXCESS OF 2000. PILOT ELECTED TO LAND ON I-40. STRUCK POWER LINES DURING THIS ATTEMPT. THE AIRCRAFT LANDED HARD IN A NOSE LEVEL ATTITUDE, AND BURNED. (.19) ON SEPTEMBER 19, 1998, ABOUT 2000 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A CESSNA 152, N48195, REGISTERED TO CAUSEY AVIATION SERVICE INC, COLLIDED WITH A POWER LINE, A VEHICLE, THEN THE GROUND NEAR BURLINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA, WHILE ON A TITLE 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AND THE PRIVATE-RATED PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, WAS NOT INJURED. OCCUPANTS IN THE VEHICLE WERE NOT INJURED. THE ORIGINATED FROM BURLINGTON-ALAMANCE REGIONAL AIRPORT, BURLINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA. ACCORDING TO FAA PERSONNEL, THE AIRPLANE WAS SEEN IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN, PERFORMING A LOW PASS, THEN DEPARTED THE AIRPORT TRAFFIC PATTERN. THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH A POWER LINE, A VEHICLE, AND THEN THE GROUND. A POSTCRASH FIRE DESTROYED THE AIRPLANE. (.4) THE PILOT FLEW TO A NEARBY AIRPORT, PERFORMED 5 FULL-STOP TAXI BACK LANDINGS, THEN CIRCLED HIS FATHER'S HOUSE 2 TIMES, AND FLEW TO ANOTHER NEARBY AIRPORT WHERE HE PERFORMED 2 SIMULATED ENGINE FAILURES IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN. EACH LANDING WAS JUST PAST THE NUMBERS OF THE 5,000 FOOT-LONG ASPHALT RUNWAY. DURING THE SECOND GO-AROUND, HE NOTED THAT THE AIRPLANE REQUIRED ABOUT 2/3'S OF THE RUNWAY TO ACCELERATE TO 60 KNOTS, BUT HE CONTINUED THE TAKEOFF. HE LEVELED OFF TO ACCELERATE THEN BEGAN TO CLIMB AT THE DEPARTURE END OF RUNWAY DURING WHICH HE NOTED THAT THE TACHOMETER WAS INDICATING 2,000 RPM. WHILE AT TRAFFIC PATTERN ALTITUDE, THE ENGINE BEGAN TO SURGE. HE MANEUVERED THE AIRPLANE FOR A FORCED LANDING ON AN EXPRESSWAY AND WHILE DESCENDING, THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH A POWER LINE, VEHICLE THEN THE GROUND. EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PREIMPACT FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION. THE PILOT REPORTED ONLY USING CARBURETOR HEAR DURING THE ENGINE RUN-UP BEFORE THE INITIAL TAKEOFF. REVIEW OF THE PILOT'S OPERATING HANDBOOK REVEALED CARBURETOR HEAT IS REQUIRED TO BE APPLIED BEFORE THROTTLE REDUCTION. REVIEW OF THE ICING PROBABILITY CHART REVEALED THE CONDITIONS WERE FAVORABLE FOR SERIOUS ICING WITH DESCENT POWER. ## 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 MIA98LA249](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98LA249), Sep 20, 1998: Cessna 152 (N48195), Burlington, NC, destroyed. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to abort the takeoff after recognizing that the airplane was slow to accelerate during the takeoff roll, and his not obtaining/maintaining clearance with the wire during the… ## Other reports on N48195 (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 19910515025339I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19910515025339I), May 15, 1991: Cessna 152 (N48195), Roxboro, NC, Minor damage. Student attempted to correct drift on landing. Made a hard landing. Nose gear collapsed. 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.