- Date
- January 20, 1992, 12:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Rockford, IL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N152BACessna 152
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 30, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920120002479A
- Case key
- 15384
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 pilot's delayed application of carburetor heat.
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
The student pilot was on his second solo cross country when he noticed a loss of 200-300 engine RPM while cruising at 3,000' MSL. He said he applied carburetor heat, and the engine ran rougher. He decided to land in a field while he still had some power available. The airplane encountered two ditches during the landing roll and received substantial damage. A subsequent inspection of the engine and associated systems disclosed no mechanical anomalies. Interviews with the pilot revealed he believes the power loss was due to carburetor icing, and that the substantial loss of power could have been precluded if he had applied carburetor heat earlier.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N152BA
- Reported as
- Cessna 152
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 15282722
- Airframe hours
- 2,825
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-N2C, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Glenview Navy Flying Club
- Registered owner
- Glenview Navy Flying Club
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 13, 1991 · 51 hours before
- Departed
- NBU · Glenview, IL
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 28
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 43 total · 43 in this make and model · 7 as pilot in command · 22 in the last 90 days · 14 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 23 °F, dew point 9 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RFD, 9 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.
Other investigations on N152BA · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.