- Date
- August 30, 2022, 10:55 local (14:55 UTC)
- Place
- Gates Mills, OH
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N204BECessna 172N
- Defining event
- Enroute: Loss of engine power (total)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20220830016949A
- Case key
- 105833
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 instructor pilot’s decision to perform an inflight magneto check with no suitable area to land. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to correctly perform a magneto check that resulted in a total loss of engine power.
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, seated in the left seat, said that the instructor pilot, seated in the right seat, asked her to perform a magneto check inflight. During the magneto check, the pilot inadvertently turned the engine ignition key to the off position resulting in a total loss of engine power. As the pilot turned the key to restart the engine, the head of the ignition key broke off. The instructor pilot transferred the controls to the pilot and attempted to move the ignition key but was also unsuccessful. The instructor pilot took the controls and performed an emergency landing into a school football field. The airplane landed hard and sustained substantial damage to the firewall, both wings, engine mount and fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N204BE
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17271338
- Built
- 1978
- Airframe hours
- 13,388
- Engine
- Lycoming O320D2G, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Pink Skies Inc
- Registered owner
- Pink Skies Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 29, 2022
- Departed
- CGF · Richmond Heights, OH
- Destination
- YNG · Youngstown, OH
- 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 27
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- October 12, 2021
- Seat
- Front
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 303.1 total · 59.1 in this make and model · 224.4 as pilot in command · 75.1 in the last 90 days · 31.8 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 79
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Seat
- Front
- Restraint
- 3-point
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 210° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 66 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.90 inHg
- Observed at
- KCGF, 3 nm away
- METAR
- KCGF 301345Z COR 21006KT 5SM -RA SCT023 BKN070 OVC090 21/19 A2990
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 7, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.2 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.