20000720011709I

Incident

FAA incident report · Cessna 182Q · Fullerton, CA · July 20, 2000

Date: July 20, 2000 · 11:05 local
Place: Fullerton, CA
Airport: Fullerton Municipal
Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Aircraft: N735MS
Reported as: Cessna 182Q
People aboard: 2
Fatal injuries: 0
Pilot’s flight hours: 370 total250 in this make and model120 in the last 90 days

N735MSRegistered now · Cessna 182QS/N 18265536 · Built 1977 Airframe modelCessna 182Q Engine modelContinental O-470 seriesReciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

(-23) Pilot was forced to land due to smoke in cockpit. A/c landed safely with no damage to a/c and no injuries to crew. Inspection revealed that the alternatore power wire from the alternator to the alternator circuit breaker to be heat damaged. The wire is an eight-gauge shielded wire with alternator output power in the center conductor and the shielding grounded to the airframe ground. For an unknown reason the shielding chaffed through to the power conductor and caused a direct short to ground. Approx. six inches of the wire showed damage. The insulation was melted between the power conductor and the shielding due to arcing. The damaged section of the wire was replaced and the shielding was inspected adjacent to the damaged area. No chaffing or defects were noted.

As the FAA filed it

(-23) PILOT WAS FORCED TO LAND DUE TO SMOKE IN COCKPIT. A/C LANDED SAFELY WITH NO DAMAGE TO A/C AND NO INJURIES TO CREW. INSPECTION REVEALED THAT THE ALTERNATORE POWER WIRE FROM THE ALTERNATOR TO THE ALTERNATOR CIRCUIT BREAKER TO BE HEAT DAMAGED. THE WIRE IS AN EIGHT-GAUGE SHIELDED WIRE WITH ALTERNATOR OUTPUT POWER IN THE CENTER CONDUCTOR AND THE SHIELDING GROUNDED TO THE AIRFRAME GROUND. FOR AN UNKNOWN REASON THE SHIELDING CHAFFED THROUGH TO THE POWER CONDUCTOR AND CAUSED A DIRECT SHORT TO GROUND. APPROX. SIX INCHES OF THE WIRE SHOWED DAMAGE. THE INSULATION WAS MELTED BETWEEN THE POWER CONDUCTOR AND THE SHIELDING DUE TO ARCING. THE DAMAGED SECTION OF THE WIRE WAS REPLACED AND THE SHIELDING WAS INSPECTED ADJACENT TO THE DAMAGED AREA. NO CHAFFING OR DEFECTS WERE NOTED.