# NTSB ERA12LA545: Cessna 172E, N377SP, East Bend, NC, September 1, 2012 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: September 1, 2012, 13:20 local (17:20 UTC) - Place: East Bend, NC - Coordinates: 36.141944, -80.531944 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.1419&lon=-80.5319&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Initial climb: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 2 minor - Status: Completed, report May 9, 2013 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Eastern Region Aviation - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 84924 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ERA12LA545 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/84924/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=84924 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA12LA545 ## Probable cause A total loss of engine power during the initial climb after takeoff for reasons that could not be determined because examination of the engine did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Not determined](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/05000000): Not determined › Not determined · Unknown/Not determined (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 172E, 3 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/05000000/cases.md?model=2072412), [All aircraft, 2,247 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/05000000/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Initial climb: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341) (defining event); cases with it: [Cessna 172E, 9 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md?model=2072412), [All aircraft, 3,820 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md) - [Emergency descent: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470); cases with it: [Cessna 172E, 12 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md?model=2072412), [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot completed an uneventful preflight inspection and engine run-up before takeoff. However, as the airplane climbed to about 100 feet above the ground, it experienced a total loss of engine power. The pilot was unable to restart the engine, so he performed a forced landing to a corn field. Postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane’s fuel tanks contained about 21 gallons of uncontaminated aviation gasoline. The airplane had been operated about 19 hours in the 3 months since its most recent annual inspection, and the engine had been operated about 1,830 hours since it was overhauled. Although weather conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to serious carburetor icing at glide power, the investigation was unable to determine the cause of the power loss. ## Factual narrative On September 1, 2012, about 1320 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172E, N377SP, operated by a private individual, was substantially damaged during a forced landing, after it experienced a total loss of engine power during the initial climb after takeoff from a private airstrip in East Bend, North Carolina. The private pilot and a passenger sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the flight destined for the Blue Ridge Airport, Martinsville, Virginia. The personal flight was conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The pilot reported that he completed an uneventful preflight inspection and engine run-up prior to beginning a takeoff roll from the 2,500-foot-long, turf runway. As the airplane climbed to about 100 feet above the ground, it experienced a total loss of engine power. The pilot was unable to restart the engine. He lowered the nose to avoid a stall, and performed a forced landing to a corn field, which resulted in substantial damage to both wings, the fuselage, and the empennage. The airplane was manufactured in 1964, and was equipped with a Continental O-300-D, 145-horsepower engine. Postaccident examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane’s fuel tanks contained approximately 21 gallons of 100-low-lead aviation gasoline, which was absent of contamination. At the time of the accident, the airplane had been operated for about 19 hours since its most recent annual inspection, which was performed on June 2, 2012. In addition, the engine had been operated for about 1,830 hours since overhaul. The weather reported at airport located about 15 miles east of the accident site included a temperature of 31 degrees Celsius (C) and a dew point of 20 degrees C. Review of an FAA Carburetor Icing Envelope chart placed the reported temperature and dew point in the "serious icing at glide power" area of the chart. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N377SP](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N377SP-2018-02-13), registration cancelled 2018-02-13, S/N 17251703, built 1964 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 172E - Registry model: [Cessna 172E](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172e) (registry code 2072412) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental 0-300 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (registry code 17022, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17251703 - Airframe hours: 2823 - Engines: CONT MOTOR O-300 145 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, June 2, 2012, 19 hours before - Departed: NONE, East Bend, NC - Destination: MTV, Martinsville, VA - Airport: Private Airstrip, runway 19, 2,500 × 75 ft, grass/turf ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 63; injuries: minor; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review May 11, 2012; seat: left; flight hours: 450 total, 429 in this make and model, 426 as pilot in command, 29 in the last 90 days, 7 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 20° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 88 °F, dew point 68 °F - Altimeter: 30.19 inHg - Observed at: INT, 15 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 20120901021939A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20120901021939A), Sep 1, 2012: Cessna 172E, East Bend, NC, Destroyed. Aircraft departed grass strip and during climb making a left turn, the engine lost power. Pilot landed aircraft in a corn field. ## Docket (6 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 22, 2013, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=84924. 7.7 MB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 1.1 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40386288&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - Additional Pilot Statement (item 2, .PDF, 189 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40386292&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Additional%20Pilot%20Statement%20-Redacted.PDF - FAA Inspector Statement (item 3, .PDF, 12 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40386289&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=FAA%20Inspector%20Statement-Master.PDF - Weather Observations (Winston Salem, NC) (item 4, .PDF, 24 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40386290&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Weather%20Observations%20(Winston%20Salem,%20NC)-Master.PDF - FAA Carburetor Icing Envelope (item 5, .PDF, 255 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40386291&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=FAA%20Carburetor%20Icing%20Envelope-Master.PDF - Photograph # 1 - Airplane As It Came to Rest (Provided by FAA) (item 6, .PDF, 6.1 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40386728&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photograph%20%23%201%20-%20Airplane%20As%20It%20Came%20to%20Rest%20(Provided%20by%20FAA)-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.