# NTSB CEN13LA166: Cessna 172, N6199E, Akron, CO, February 17, 2013 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: February 16, 2013, 18:02 local (Feb 17, 2013, 01:02 UTC) - Place: Akron, CO - Coordinates: 40.175556, -103.219718 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.1756&lon=-103.2197&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control in flight](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 2 minor - Status: Completed, report June 12, 2013 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 86255 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN13LA166 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/86255/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=86255 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN13LA166 ## Probable cause The pilot’s physical impairment due to alcohol intoxication, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall during landing. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Action: incorrect action performance](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041015): Personnel issues › Action/decision · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 172, 5 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041015/cases.md?model=2072402), [All aircraft, 1,386 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041015/cases.md) - [Impairment/incapacitation: alcohol](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02012015): Personnel issues › Physical · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 172, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02012015/cases.md?model=2072402), [All aircraft, 87 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02012015/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control in flight](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240) (defining event); cases with it: [Cessna 172, 16 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence.md?model=2072402), [All aircraft, 5,002 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence.md) ## Analysis A law enforcement officer observed the airplane in the airport traffic pattern just after sunset. The officer continued to monitor the movements of the airplane as it flew around the airport and returned to land. After losing sight of the airplane for a moment, the officer observed the airplane in a nose-down attitude on the runway and on fire. According to the pilot’s initial statement, he was flying the final leg of the traffic pattern when the airplane stalled about 10 feet above the runway. The airplane impacted the runway and then caught fire. In a subsequent statement provided by the pilot, he stated that at 10 feet above the ground everything was normal but then the airplane suddenly nosed down and crashed. Such an abrupt loss of altitude is consistent with an aerodynamic stall. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot was taken to the local sheriff’s office where he underwent a breath alcohol test. The reported value was .078 grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. Federal Aviation Administration regulations prohibit any person from acting or attempting to act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft while having 0.040 grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. The level of ethanol measured in this case would have significantly impaired the pilot’s performance. ## Factual narrative On February 16, 2013, about 1802 mountain standard time, a Cessna 172, N6199E, impacted the runway while landing at Colorado Plains Regional Airport (KAKO), Akron, CO. The private pilot and passenger sustained minor injuries. The airplane was destroyed due to impact damage and post-impact fire damage. The airplane was registered to and operated by a private individual under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The local flight originated from KAKO at an undetermined time. At 1750, a sergeant with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office was on patrol near KAKO, observed the accident airplane flying, and continued to watch as the pilot flew around the traffic pattern. The sergeant saw the airplane descending and then lost sight of it due to trees obstructing his line of sight. When the sergeant saw the airplane again it was nose down on the runway, nose landing gear collapsed, and on fire. The sergeant drove to the accident site and met the pilot and passenger. The pilot stated to the sergeant that he “had come in at the wrong angle, stalled it, and nosed it in.” The sergeant also noticed an odor of alcohol on the pilot’s breath. A lieutenant with the Washington County Sheriff’s office was also on scene and discovered several beer cans under the airplanes wing and near the accident site. The lieutenant also noticed a strong odor of an “intoxicating beverage” on the pilot’s breath, his eyes were blood shot, he was having problems walking and his speech was slightly slurred. When he asked the pilot if he had been drinking in the plane he answered “no.” The pilot stated that he and the passenger purchased a twelve pack of beer but did not consume any. The pilot and passenger were taken to the Sheriff’s office to submit written statements about the accident. The pilot stated that during landing he lost airspeed at about 10 feet above the ground, the nose fell down, impacted the runway, and collapsed underneath the airplane. The passenger stated that during landing the airplane stalled about 10 feet above the ground. At 1931 the pilot performed a breath alcohol test while at the Sheriff’s office. The test revealed that the pilot had 0.078 grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. Federal Aviation Administration regulations prohibit any person from acting or attempting to act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft while having 0.040 grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. The pilot provided a final statement, which stated that at 10 feet above the ground everything was normal but then the airplane suddenly nosed down and crashed. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N6199E](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6199E-2018-02-08), registration cancelled 2018-02-08, S/N 46299, built 1958 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 172 - Registry model: [Cessna 172](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172) (registry code 2072402) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental 0-300 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (registry code 17022, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 46299 - Airframe hours: 1834 - Engines: CONT MOTOR O-300 SER 145 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Destroyed - Fire: On-Ground - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Shannon Lee Greene - Registered owner: Shannon Lee Greene - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, February 1, 2012, 45 hours before - Departed: KAKO, Akron, CO - Destination: Akron, CO - Flight plan: Unknown - Airport: KAKO, Colorado Plains Regional Airpo, runway 29, 7,001 × 100 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 50; injuries: minor; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review January 15, 2011; seat: left; flight hours: 265 total, 250 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Night - Wind: 360° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 39 °F, dew point 16 °F - Altimeter: 30.01 inHg - Observed at: KAKO ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20130216011429A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130216011429A), Feb 16, 2013: Cessna 172, Akron, CO, Destroyed. On 02/16/2013 at approximately 1802 hrs. MST, N6199E a Cessna model 172 aircraft was substantially damaged while landing at Akron (kako) airport, CO. There… ## Docket (5 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 22, 2013, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=86255. 1.1 MB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 613 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40389027&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - Police Report Narrative (item 2, .PDF, 153 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40388631&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Police%20Report%20Narrative-Redacted.PDF - Pilot and Passenger Statements (item 3, .PDF, 103 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40388632&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%20and%20Passenger%20Statements-Redacted.PDF - Intoxilyzer Results (item 4, .PDF, 92 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40388633&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Intoxilyzer%20Results-Redacted.PDF - Miscellaneous - 14 CFR 91.17 (item 5, .PDF, 121 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40389267&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Miscellaneous%20-%2014%20CFR%2091.17-Master.PDF 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.