- Date
- August 4, 1989, 22:30 local (Aug 5, 1989, 03:30 UTC)
- Place
- Mckinney, TX
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4377LCessna 172G
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report March 29, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890804027369A
- Case key
- 22902
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
Total failure of the engine assembly/rocker arm/tappet shaft.
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
During a night cross-country flight, the engine lost power and during the forced landing, the airplane impacted trees and then the terrain. During a partial teardown of the engine, it was found that the number 3 cylinder exhaust valve rocker arm shaft had broken. There was also a large gap between the rocker arm and the exhaust valve stem.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4377L
- Reported as
- Cessna 172G
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17254455
- Airframe hours
- 3,573
- Engine
- Continental O-300-D, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Gary R. Swain
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 30, 1988 · 137 hours before
- Departed
- MLC · Mcalester, OK
- Destination
- HQZ · Mesquite, TX
- Airport
- TKI · Municipal
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--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 600 total · 550 in this make and model · 510 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 28 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 160° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
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 N4377L · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.