# Accident 20170828013689A: Cessna 180J, Gaylord, MI, August 28, 2017

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 28, 2017, 13:12 local time
- Place: Gaylord, MI
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.9500° N, 84.6214° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.9500&lon=-84.6214&mi=10
- Aircraft: N180LP, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N180LP-2020-10-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 180J (registry code 2072622, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-180j) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 180J
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR IO-520-D
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 2
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 5,000 total, 1,000 in this make and model, 10 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN17FA332](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN17FA332) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20170828013689A

## Narrative

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

N180LP, IMPACTED TREES AND TERRAIN DURING A FORCED LANDING NEAR GAYLORD, MICHIGAN. THE PRIVATE PILOT AND HIS PASSENGER WERE SERIOUSLY INJURED, AND THE AIRPLANE SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL

DAMAGE.

THE PILOT REPORTED THAT AFTER DEPARTING OTSEGO LAKE HE FLEW NORTH TOWARD THE GAYLORD REGIONAL AIRPORT (GLR) TO FLY A PRACTICE INSTRUMENT LANDING SYSTEM APPROACH TO RUNWAY 9. AFTER THE PRACTICE APPROACH, HE FLEW TOWARD HIS PRIVATE AIRSTRIP LOCATED ABOUT 5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF GLR. HE REPORTED THAT THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED A TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER AND THE PROPELLER

STOPPED ROTATING AS HE WAS COMPLETING A SERIES OF TURNS NEAR HIS AIRSTRIP. THE PILOT STATED THAT BEFORE THE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER THE AIRPLANE WAS AT LEAST 500 FT ABOVE GROUND LEVEL (AGL) AND THE ENGINE WAS OPERATING AT 2,300 RPM AND 23 INCHES OF MANIFOLD PRESSURE. ADDITIONALLY, HE STATED THAT THE ENGINE DID NOT SPUTTER, BANG, OR RUN ROUGH BEFORE THE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH TREES DURING THE FORCED LANDING.

THE PASSENGER REPORTED THAT THEY CIRCLED THE PILOT'S PRIVATE AIRSTRIP A COUPLE OF TIMES TO VIEW THE PROPERTY. WHILE CIRCLING OVER THE AIRSTRIP, THE PILOT AND PASSENGER OBSERVED AND DISCUSSED HOW THE FUEL GAUGES FLUCTUATED WHILE THE AIRPLANE WAS IN A SUSTAINED TURN WITH PARTIALLY FULL FUEL

TANKS. THE PASSENGER REPORTED THAT THE ENGINE QUIT WHILE THE AIRPLANE WAS IN A TURN, AND THAT THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH TREES AS THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO LAND AT THE AIRSTRIP.

SIX WITNESSES REPORTED HEARING THE ENGINE SPUTTER PRIOR TO THE CRASH.

EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED FUEL IN THE CARBURETOR, FIREWALL STRAINER, AND TANKS. EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE SHOWED CYLINDERS HAD COMPRESSION AND THE MAGNETOS PRODUCED SPARK.

## 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 CEN17FA332](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN17FA332), Aug 28, 2017: Cessna 180J (N180LP), Gaylord, MI, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to use carburetor heat while operating in weather conditions that were conducive to carburetor ice formation, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to carburetor ice…

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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