# Accident 20020402012629A: Cessna 152, Boulder City, NV, April 2, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 2, 2002, 16:55 local time
- Place: Boulder City, NV
- Airport: Boulder City Municipal Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Forced/Precautionary Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.9472° N, 114.8608° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.9472&lon=-114.8608&mi=10
- Aircraft: N48908, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N48908-2014-10-14) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 152 (registry code 2071835, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-152) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-235 series (registry code 41505, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-235-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 152
- Reported engine: LYC O235L2C
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 713 total, 126 in this make and model, 209 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX02LA123](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA123) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020402012629A

## Narrative

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

(-23) THE AIRPLANE MADE AN OFF AIRPORT FORCED LANDING FOLLOWING A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER IMMEDIATELY AFTER DEPARTURE. AFTER TAKEOFF, UPON REACHING 300 TO 400 FEET ABOVE GROUND LEVEL (AGL), THE ENGINE EXPERIENCED A RAPID LOSS OF POWER. THE PILOT MANEUVERED THE AIRPLANE IN A GLIDING CONFIGURATION AND, AFTER DETERMINING THAT THE AIRPLANE WAS UNABLE TO REACH AIRPORT, OPTED TO PERFORM A FORCED LANDING IN A DRY RIVERBED. WHILE IN THE LANDING FLARE, THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH VEGETATION AND CAME TO AN ABRUPT STOP AFTER IMPACTING A LARGE BUSH. A REVIEW OF THE AIRPLANE'S MAINTENANCE RECORDS DISCLOSED THAT THE ENGINE HAD A HISTORY OF ONGOING PROBLEMS WITH THE IDLE MIXTURE. IN AN EFFORT TO ADDRESS THOSE PROBLEMS, THE OPERATOR HAD THE CARBURETOR OVERHAULED ABOUT A WEEK PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. THE MIXTURE DISCREPANCY OCCURRED AGAIN FOLLOWING THE CARBURETOR OVERHAUL. AFTER THE ACCIDENT, AN ENGINE EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT SPARK PLUGS FROM THE NUMBER ONE CYLINDER, AS WELL AS THE TOP NUMBER TWO PLUG, APPEARED DARK AND SOOTY, WITH THE BOTTOM NUMBER TWO PLUG BEING OILY. IN ADDITION, THE BOTTOM NUMBER THREE AND FOUR PLUGS WERE COVERED IN LEAD DEPOSITS. INVESTIGATORS PERFORMED AN ENGINE RUN, WHRE IT ACCELERATED UP TO 1,600 REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE (RPM) AND, DESPITE BLACK SMOKE EMITTING FROM THE EXHAUST STACK, RAN SMOOTHLY; AFTER LEANING OUT THE MIXTURE, IT ACCELERATED UP TO 2,100 RPM AND THE EXHAUST CLEARED. A DETAILED EXAMINATION OF THE CARBURETOR REVEALED NO MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS OR ANOMALIES OTHER THAN AN EXCESSIVELY LOW IDLE FUEL FLOW.

## 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 LAX02LA123](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA123), Apr 3, 2002: Cessna 152 (N48908), Boulder City, NV, substantial damage. Probable cause: a loss of engine power due to an undetermined malfunction of the carburetor.

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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