# Accident 19980930027309A: Cessna 182, Wheatfield Y, IN, September 30, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: September 30, 1998, 05:45 local time - Place: Wheatfield Y, IN - Airport: Flying J - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Forced/Precautionary Landing - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 41.5302° N, 86.9002° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.5302&lon=-86.9002&mi=10 - Aircraft: N6474A, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6474A-2013-04-24) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 182 (registry code 2072702, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-182) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Continental O-470 series (registry code 17026, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 182 - Reported engine: CONT O470L - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 657 total, 374 in this make and model, 31 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI98LA365](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA365) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980930027309A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (.19) ON SEPTEMBER 30, 1998, AT 0545 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A CESSNA 182, N6474A, OPERATED BY A PRIVATE PILOT COLLIDED WITH A SOYBEAN CROP IN WHEATFIELD, INDIANA, FOLLOWING A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER DURING AN INITIAL TAKEOFF CLIMB. THE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES. THE TWO REMAINING PASSENGERS WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE 14 CFR PART 91 FLIGHT AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. THE FLIGHT WAS ORIGINATING FROM A PRIVATE AIRSTRIP IN WHEATFIELD, INDIANA, AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT DURING THE TAKEOFF CLIMB AT AN ALTITUDE OF ABOUT 100 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND, THE ENGINE BEGAN RUNNING ROUGH AND LOSING POWER. HE LANDED THE AIRPLANE IN A NEIGHBORING SOYBEAN FIELD. (.4) ON SEPTEMBER 30, 1998, AT 0545 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A CESSNA 182, N6474A, OPERATED BY A PRIVATE PILOT COLLIDED WITH A SOYBEAN FIELD IN WHEATFIELD, INDIANA, FOLLOWING A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER DURING A INITIAL TAKEOFF CLIMB. THE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES. THE TWO REMAINING PASSENGERS WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE 14 CFR PART 91 FLIGHT AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. THE FLIGHT WAS ORIGINATING FROM A PRIVATE AIRSTRIP IN WHEATFIELD, INDIANA, AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT EVERYTHING SEEMED NORMAL DURING THE AIRCRAFT PREFLIGHT AND ENGINE RUN-UP. DURING THE TAKEOFF CLIMB AT AN ALTITUDE OF ABOUT 800 FEET ABOVE MEAN SEA LEVEL, THE ENGINE BEGAN RUNNING ROUGH AND LOSING POWER. HE REPORTED HE SET UP FOR AN EMERGENCY LANDING, CHECKED THE FUEL SELECTOR, AND APPLIED THE CARBURETOR HEAT. THE PILOT REPORTED HE LANDED THE AIRPLANE IN THE SOYBEAN FIELD DURING WHICH TIME THE NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED. THE PILOT REPORTED AFTER THE ACCIDENT THAT HE INADVERTENTLY APPLIED THE CABIN HEAT INSTEAD OF THE CARBURETOR HEAT WHEN THE LOSS OF POWER OCCURRED. INSPECTION OF THE AIRPLANE BY AN INSPECTOR FROM THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, FLIGHT STANDARDS DISTRICT OFFICE FAILED TO REVEAL ANY MECHANICAL FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WHICH WOULD HAVE RESULTED IN THE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE TEMPERATURE AND DEWPOINT REPORTED AT SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, 46 MILES NORTHEAST OF THE ACCIDENT SITE WERE BOTH 59 DEGREES F. ACCORDING TO AN ICING PROBABILITY CURVE THIS TEMPERATURE/DEWPOINT COMBINATION IS CONDUCIVE FOR SERIOUS ICING AT CRUISE POWER. (-23) SHORTLY AFTER TAKING OFF FROM A GRASS PRIVATE AIR STRIP, THE PILOT STATED THE AIRCRAFT LOST POWER. HE APPLIED CARBURETOR HEAT BUT THINKS HE MAY HAVE ACTIVATED THE CABIN AIR BY MISTAKE. AIRCRAFT THEN CRASHED INTO A SOY BEAN FIELD. EXAMINATION OF THE WREAKAGE REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF ANY MALFUNCTION OR DEFECT. ## 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 CHI98LA365](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA365), Sep 30, 1998: Cessna 182 (N6474A), Wheatfield, IN, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to apply carburetor heat when the engine lost power. Factors associated with the accident were the carburetor icing conditions which prevailed, the low altitude at which the loss… 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.