20120113001149A

On January 13th, 2012, at approximately 2357 UTC (1757 local time), the airman was involved in an aircraft accident while performing an off-airport emergency landing, directly resulting from a loss of engine power; the emergency landing site was approximately 8.4 nautical miles northwest of the captain jack thomas/El Dorado airport (keqa), El Dorado, Kansas. The aircraft, a Cessna CE-150, was owned and operated by a local pilot school conducting flight instructional activities in accordance with 14 CFR part 61. Visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed throughout the entire area; weather reported via the colonel james jabara (aao) automated surface observation system (ASOS), indicated clear skies, visibility 10 statute miles, winds 190 at 4 knots, temperature of 3 degrees celsius, and a dew point of -8 degrees celsius. Per the airman, the aircraft departed the benton lloyd steaman field (1K1), benton, Kansas, in a northeasterly direction, intent on evaluating the aircraft's climb and cruise performance; the airman stated that a cross-country flight to California was planned for the next day in this specific aircraft. Upon reaching 10,700 feet mean sea level (MSL), the airman stated that it was difficult to maintain altitude, and therefore elected to initiate a descent. Per the airman, the descent was conducted with the engine operating at the low end of the green arc, as displayed on the tachometer; 130-135 knots as indicated on the aircraft's airspeed indicator. As the aircraft descended through 8,000 to 8,500 ft. MSL, the airman stated that the throttle was advanced to increase engine power; however the engine did not respond; per the airman, the tachometer did not increase beyond 1,500 RPM regardless of throttle position. The airman indicated that carburetor heat was applied for approximately one (1) minute; however, no immediate change in engine power was noted. Per the airman, the mixture control was adjusted throughout the climb and re-adjusted during the descent; mixture was not adjusted to the full rich position. Any adjustment, per the airman, did not restore engine power, as the propeller RPM did not rise above 1,200-1,500 RPM. The airman initially elected to conduct a forced landing on K-196, which runs north/south, in the vicinity of the east/west crossing street, nw 40th. Due to automobile traffic, the airman chose to conduct this emergency landing in a field adjacent to the road. Prior to the landing, the airman transmitted a mayday call on the benton common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF), which was subsequently relayed to the wichita terminal radar approach control (TRACON) facility by an aircraft operating in the benton lloyd stearman airport traffic pattern. During the descent, the airman stated that the propeller eventually stopped windmilling, however it was restarted by engaging the starter; engine power was never restored. Post-accident inspection of the aircraft's propeller revealed the absence of chord-wise scoring, and leading edge damage, confirming the aircraft's propeller was indeed, not rotating prior to impact. The aircraft, prior to landing, was configured with full flap and, per the airman, flying at approximately 60 knots. Due the aircraft's approach path being higher than planned, the aircraft was not able to land in the originally selected field on the south side of nw 40th, and therefore continued on to the next field, just north of nw 40th. Prior to its emergency landing, the aircraft's right main landing gear strut struck the top wire of the field's perimeter barbed-wire fence. The aircraft's low altitude and minimal forward energy caused the aircraft to land short of the next field, resulting in a slightly nose low impact with a drainage ditch. The resultant impact caused the aircraft to flip over and rest in an inverted position; there were no visible signs or terrain scarring indicating forward movement after the aircraft's nose wheel struck the emb