# NTSB CHI02LA255: Cessna 172P, N381J, Buffalo City, WI, August 19, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 19, 2002, 11:10 local (16:10 UTC) - Place: Buffalo City, WI - Coordinates: 44.251667, -91.858612 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.2517&lon=-91.8586&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report November 25, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Cessna Aircraft Company, Federal Aviation Administration - Minneapolis FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 55584 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI02LA255 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55584/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55584 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI02LA255 ## Probable cause The malfunction of the seat positioning system for undetermined reasons, which resulted in the loss of directional control. A factor to the accident was the descending embankment. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Airframe/component/system failure/malfunction, takeoff - roll/run - fuselage,seat - malfunction (cause) - Loss of control - on ground/water, takeoff - roll/run - directional control - not possible, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, takeoff - roll/run - terrain condition - drop-off/descending embankment (contributing factor) ## Analysis The pilot reported his seat slid rearward during a takeoff from a gravel road, resulting in a loss of directional control. The aircraft veered off the road and went down an embankment. The seat and its positioning system were examined. The unintentional rearward movement of the seat, as described by the pilot, could not be duplicated. The seat moved freely along the seat tracks, with the latch pins engaging the pinholes. The seat could be twisted (racked) resulting in the outboard latch pin engaging a pinhole and the failure of the inboard latch pin to engage a pinhole. If the seat was displaced in the forward direction, both latch pins engaged a pinhole. ## Factual narrative On August 19, 2002, at 1110 central daylight time, a Cessna 172P, N381J, piloted by an airline transport pilot, sustained substantial damage while performing a takeoff from a gravel road near Buffalo City, Wisconsin. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The business flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot reported no injuries. The flight was originating at the time of the accident and had the intended destination of Winona, Minnesota. According to the pilot's written statement, "On take off, after applying full power and rolling for about 20 to 30 feet, the seat slid back full aft preventing me from reaching the rudder pedals. Therefore I could not maintain the directional control nor I could bring the plane to a stop. I tried to pull the seat forward but it was locked aft and the seat belt & shoulder harness prevented me to move forward. I pulled the power back- the plane had already veered to the left in an embankment 15 [feet] deep." An inspector with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and a representative of the Cessna Aircraft Company conducted post accident examinations of the airplane. The seat positioning system was a dual latch pin design. The seat tracks had light wear markings, the seat base and attachment feet were worn and the vertical supports of the seat base flexed inboard and outboard approximately 0.20 inches. The seat moved freely along the tracks and the latch pins engaged the pinholes along the tracks. The seat could be twisted (racked) resulting in the outboard latch pin engaging a pinhole and the failure of the inboard latch pin to engage a pinhole. If the seat was displaced in the forward direction, both latch pins engaged a pinhole. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N381J](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N381J), registered now, S/N 17274183, built 1980 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172P - Registry model: [Cessna 172P](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172p) (registry code 2072436) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17274183 - Airframe hours: 9829 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-D25 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Business, Part 91 - Operator: Grandview Photos - Registered owner: Duffy Aircraft Sales & Leasing - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, March 8, 2002 - Departed: Buffalo City, WI - Destination: ONA, Winona, MN ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 46; injuries: none; airline transport, commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review June 14, 2002; seat: left; flight hours: 5,230 total, 3,407 in this make and model, 5,123 as pilot in command, 264 in the last 90 days, 95 in the last 30 days, 6 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 320° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 72 °F, dew point 55 °F - Altimeter: 30.04 inHg - Observed at: ONA, 12 nm away ## 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 20020819023169A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020819023169A), Aug 19, 2002: Cessna 172P, Buffalocity, WI, Substantial damage. (-23) On August 19, 2002, at 1110 CDT, a Cessna 172P owned by duff's aircraft sales and leasing inc., and operated by bruno louis jacquet, departed the roadway… ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 17, 2003, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55584. 323 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 323 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40423637&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.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.