# Accident 20150919015639A: Cessna 172E, Gettysburg, PA, September 19, 2015

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 19, 2015, 10:43 local time
- Place: Gettysburg, PA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.8131° N, 77.2772° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8131&lon=-77.2772&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3647S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3647S-2019-01-17) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172E (registry code 2072412, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172e) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-300 series (registry code 17022, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172E
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 1 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA15LA363](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA15LA363) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20150919015639A

## Narrative

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

AIRCRAFT DEPARTED PRIVATE AIRSTRIP. AIRCRAFT OPERATED 1.2 HOURS SINCE 2013. AIRBORNE APPROX. 30 MINUTES. AIRCRAFT AT 3000'AGL, DESCENDED INTENTIONALLY, WITHOUT POWER REDUCTION,  TO 1000' AGL TO PRACTICE LANDINGS.  AT 1000' ENGINE COUGHED ONCE A QUIT. RESTART ATTEMPT UNSUCCESSFUL. ATTEMPTED TO LAND IN FIELD, BOUNCED AND BECAME AIRBORNE OVER TREES APPROX. 20' HIGH, BOUNCED AGAIN, AIRBORNE AGAIN AND STRUCK TREES. PILOT CRITICALLY INJURED, PASSENGER SERIOUS. PASSENGER IS CERTIFIED PILOT, STATED ENGINE WAS ROUGH ON ONE MAGNETO PRIOR TO TAKEOFF. PAX DID NOT KNOW WHICH MAG WAS ROUGH, ENGINE SMOOTHED AFTER PILOT SWITCHED BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN MAGS.  NTSB ON-SCENE DETERMINED CLEAN FUEL IN STRAINER/GASCOLATOR, NO CONTAMINANTS OBSERVED. SPARK PLUG CONDITION GOOD, AND SPARK AT ALL MAGNETOR TOWERS (BOTH MAGS).

BLOCK 18, PBE NOT UTILIZED AS BIOHAZARD AREA WAS NOT ACCESSED.

10/28/2015 PILOT SUCCUMBED TO INJURIES.

## 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 ERA15LA363](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA15LA363), Sep 19, 2015: Cessna 172E (N3647S), Gettysburg, PA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The total loss of engine power due to carburetor icing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to maintain a proper approach speed during the forced landing, which resulted in impact…

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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