- Date
- July 5, 1991, 18:15 local (23:15 UTC)
- Place
- Menomonee Falls, WI
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4735DCessna 182A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 10, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910705026539A
- Case key
- 15118
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 fatigue induced propeller blade failure. A related factor was the operator's delayed propeller overhaul.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
Shortly after the pilot applied full power for the takeoff ground roll, one propeller blade failed and separated from the hub assembly. The engine then broke free of the engine mounts. Post accident metallurgical examination of the propeller blade and hub assembly revealed the failure was due to fatigue. The point of origin was the first thread of the threaded hub. The propeller had been installed on July 11, 1975, and had accumulated 1227.57 hours at the time of the accident. The propeller had not been overhauled. The manufacturer recommends propeller overhaul at intervals not to exceed 5 calendar years. An airworthiness directive effective 33 days after the accident requires a penetrant inspection of the propeller blade threaded retention area, and a modification of the propeller assembly for early detection of failure.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4735D
- Reported as
- Cessna 182A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 34835
- Airframe hours
- 4,200
- Engine
- Continental O-470-L, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Robert D. Blanchard
- Registered owner
- Robert D. Blanchard
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 2, 1991 · 90 hours before
- Airport
- 76C · Aeropark, runway 18, 2,600 × 50 ft, grass/turf
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
- 39
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 668 total · 520 in this make and model · 628 as pilot in command · 19 in the last 90 days · 9 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.