- Date
- July 2, 1994, 14:00 local (18:00 UTC)
- Place
- Bristol, NH
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N734TUCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 12, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940702017209A
- Case key
- 38776
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 maintenance personnel to remove an object from the carburetor heat duct during annual inspection which blocked induction air and resulted in the loss of engine power, and the subsequent collision with the terrain during a forced landing.
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 was conducting a commercial sightseeing flight. He stated that while in cruise flight, there was a loss of engine power. He attempted to regain engine power, but the engine did not respond. He initiated a forced landing to a field. During the landing roll, the nose gear collapsed and damaged the firewall. An FAA inspector examined the engine and found a rag in the carburetor heat ducting. This was the airplane's third flight since an annual inspection.
Factual narrative
On Saturday, July 2, 1994, at 1400 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N734TU, piloted by Thomas Oliver and operated by Emerson Aviation, Inc., sustained substantial damage during a forced landing near Bristol, New Hampshire. The pilot received minor injuries, and the two passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight was operated under 14 CFR Part 91.
The sightseeing flight was maneuvering at 2500 feet, when the pilot reported a loss of engine power. There was insufficient engine power to sustain flight; therefore, the pilot established a forced landing to the nearest field. During the landing roll, the nose gear collapsed and the firewall was damaged.
Mr. Sylvester Dye, a Federal Aviation Administration Airworthiness Inspector, examined the airplane. He found a rag in the carburetor heat duct. The airplane had flown three flights since the completion of an annual inspection.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N734TU
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17269108
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Emerson Aviation, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Russell Jones
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- LCI · Laconia, NH
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
- 26
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 310 total · 175 in this make and model · 264 as pilot in command · 36 in the last 90 days · 27 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 11 knots, gusting 16
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LCI, 22 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.
Other investigations on N734TU · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.