GAA20CA075

NTSB accident investigation · Cessna 182 · Broomfield, CO · November 6, 2019

Accident · No injuriesData collectionFinal report
Date
November 6, 2019, 14:00 local (21:00 UTC)
Place
Broomfield, CO
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N97596Cessna 182
Defining event
Landing: Aerodynamic stall/spin
Weather
Day
Status
Completed · report May 21, 2020
Report
Approved by Office Director
NTSB office
General Aviation Accidents
Parties
FAA
FAA report
20191106020699A
Case key
100565

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Probable cause

The pilot’s inadvertent flight into icing conditions, which resulted in the accumulation of structural icing and an aerodynamic stall.

Findings · 3

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.

Use of equip/info: aircraft controlPersonnel issues › Task performance · PilotCessna 182Q: 34 casesAll aircraft: 9,295 casesProbable cause
Object/animal/substance: snow/iceEnvironmental issues › Physical environment · Effect on equipmentCessna 182Q: 1 caseAll aircraft: 67 casesProbable cause
Temp/humidity/pressure: conducive to structural icingEnvironmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Effect on operationCessna 182Q: 1 caseAll aircraft: 103 casesProbable cause

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 reported that, while operating in instrument meteorological conditions, the airplane started accumulating ice on the wings and windshield. He informed air traffic control (ATC) and requested to be diverted. ATC vectored him to a nearby airport for an instrument approach. Following completion of the instrument approach, while the airplane was about 10 ft above ground level, the airplane stalled and then landed hard on the runway. The pilot taxied the airplane to the ramp without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The Federal Aviation Administration's Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, FAA-H-8083-25B, provides information and guidance in a section titled, "Stalls," which stated, in part, that "as little as 0.8 millimeter of ice on the upper wing surface increases drag and reduces aircraft lift by 25 percent."

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that, while in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) the airplane started accumulating ice on the wings and windshield. He informed air traffic control (ATC) and requested to be diverted. ATC vectored him to a nearby airport for an instrument approach. Following completion of the instrument approach, while the airplane was about 10 ft above the runway, the airplane stalled and landed hard on the runway. The pilot taxied to the ramp without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The Federal Aviation Administration's Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, FAA-H-8083-25B, provides information and guidance in a section titled "Stalls" which stated in part: As little as 0.8 millimeter of ice on the upper wing surface increases drag and reduces aircraft lift by 25 percent.

Aircraft

Registration
N97596
Reported as
Cessna 182 (Q)
Category
Airplane
Serial number
18267143
Built
1979
Airframe hours
6,470.4
Engine
Continental O-470, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Aero-Sphere Inc
Registered owner
Aero-Sphere Inc
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
100 hour · August 22, 2019
Departed
APA · Denver, CO
Destination
LMO · Longmont, CO
Flight plan
IFR
Airport
BJC · Rocky Mountain Metropolitan, runway 30R, 9,000 × 100 ft, asphalt
Equipment
Onboard weather, Electronic multifunction display, ADS-B, Stall warning system

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
32
Injuries
None
Certificate
Commercial
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 1, With waivers/limitations
Last flight review
July 31, 2018
Seat
Left
Restraint
3-point
Flight hours
430 total · 82 in this make and model

Weather

Conditions
Day
Wind
80° at 6 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
700 ft overcast
Temperature
32 °F, dew point 30 °F
Altimeter
30.29 inHg
Icing
Unknown
Turbulence
Unknown
Observed at
KBJC, 1 nm away

Docket · 3

The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 10, 2020, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.1 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.