- Date
- January 12, 1992, 08:40 local (15:40 UTC)
- Place
- Show Low, AZ
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N1571ECessna 172N
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 13, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920112000399A
- Case key
- 27536
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 failure of the carburetor heat box attach straps which allowed the carburetor heat box to separate from the exhaust system heat muff and rendered the carburetor heat system inoperative. The engine then lost power due to carburetor ice.
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 pilot said while in level cruise on an IFR flight the engine began to loose power due to carburetor ice and attempts to remedy the situation were unsuccessful with the engine eventually loosing all power. The pilot declared an emergency with albuquerque center and was radar vectored toward the Show Low airport. The flight was intermittently in clouds during the emergency descent and broke out at a low altitude. The aircraft had insufficient altitude to make the airport and landed in the only available location, a field about 23 miles from the airport. During roll out, the aircraft collided with a ditch and nosed over. Post accident examination of the aircraft by FAA inspectors revealed that the carburetor heat box had separated from the heat muff of the exhaust system and was hanging loose in the cowling attached only by the fabric hose. A metal band which attaches the carb heat box to the muff had separated. Chaffing on the cowling in the area of where the heat box was hanging indicated it had been separated for some time. The last 100 hour inspection was accomplished 80 operating hours prior to the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1571E
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17271049
- Airframe hours
- 9,000
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- K & M Aviation
- Registered owner
- K & M Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 30, 1991 · 80 hours before
- Departed
- DVT · Phoenix, AZ
- Destination
- ABQ · Albuquerque, NM
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 21
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 171 total · 56 in this make and model · 122 as pilot in command · 38 in the last 90 days · 32 in the last 30 days · 7 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 800 ft broken
- Temperature
- 25 °F, dew point 21 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SOW, 25 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.