- Date
- January 1, 2022, 17:15 local (23:15 UTC)
- Place
- Port Aransas, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N8816TCessna 182C
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR pattern final: Fuel related
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20220101000149A
- Case key
- 104496
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The loss of engine power due to carburetor icing and the pilot’s failure to utilize carburetor heat.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that he was returning to land after dropping a load of skydivers at 10,000 ft above mean sea level, and that he did not apply carburetor heat during the descent. He reduced the throttle to idle when he entered an extended based leg of the traffic pattern. The approach path was low, so the pilot increased the throttle, but the engine did not respond. He completed steps to troubleshoot the loss of power, but he did not apply the carburetor heat. The pilot made a forced landing to a marshy area; the airplane impacted uneven terrain and sustained substantial damage to the left wing. Examination of the fuel system did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The atmospheric conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to the development of serious carburetor icing at glide power. Given the evidence, it is likely that carburetor ice accumulated, which resulted in the inability to increase engine power during the final approach. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the airplane’s engine is highly susceptible to ice formation during a descent and the use of carburetor heat is recommended.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8816T
- Reported as
- Cessna 182C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 52716
- Built
- 1960
- Airframe hours
- 5,680
- Engine
- Continental Motors O-470L-50, 270 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Skydiving · Part 91
- Operator
- Safesix Aviation LLC
- Registered owner
- Safesix Aviation LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · September 15, 2021
- Airport
- RAS · Mustang Beach, runway 12, 3,482 × 70 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- ADS-B
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 21
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 3, 2021
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 254 total · 17 in this make and model · 134 as pilot in command · 22 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 86 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.69 inHg
- Observed at
- KTFP, 9 nm away
- METAR
- KTFP 011815Z AUTO 22008KT 10SM CLR 30/22 A2969 RMK AO2 T03040216
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on February 9, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 7.0 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N8816T · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.