WPR22LA025

The student pilot reported that, during final approach to land on a solo flight, the engine lost total power while the airplane was about 400 ft above ground level. The student pilot elected to conduct an off-airport landing on a street. During the landing roll, the right wing struck a street light pole, and the nose landing gear struck the street curb, resulting in substantial damage to the wing and fuselage undercarriage. The student pilot reported that, before the accident, the airplane had lost power on multiple occasions after the engine was warmed up and at idle. Maintenance had been performed to correct the issue and the airplane was signed off as airworthy with respect to the work performed and was approved to return to service; however, the power loss occurred at least once after the maintenance but before the accident. No maintenance entries were identified in the logbook to indicate that further maintenance was accomplished. The student pilot elected to operate the airplane on the day of the accident, even though the engine issue was not fully resolved. After the airplane was recovered, a mechanic ran the engine and reported that it ran smoothly for about 2 minutes. The mechanic also stated that magneto and mixture checks were “normal.” The mechanic performed the engine run and the magneto and mixture checks without government oversight. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed that the fuel selector switch was jammed between the “both” and right tank positions likely due to the damage to the floor, which was deformed upward, during the accident sequence. The cause of the total loss of engine power could not be determined based on the available evidence for this investigation.

On October 31, 2021, about 1150 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172K airplane, N1082V, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Rexburg, Idaho. The student pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. The student pilot reported that the intent of the flight was to meet the requirements for the solo cross-country flight for his private pilot certificate. While the airplane was on final approach to land at an altitude of about 400 ft above ground level, the student pilot added throttle to correct for a low approach angle, and the engine “just died.” He cycled the engine ignition switch twice while at full throttle but did not turn on the electric fuel pump. The propeller continued to rotate after the engine lost power. The student pilot realized that, while attempting to restart the engine, the airplane had lost about one-half of its altitude. He declared an emergency and focused his attention on where to land the airplane. He elected to land on a street. During the landing roll, the right wing struck a street light pole, and the landing gear struck the street curb, resulting in substantial damage to the wing and fuselage undercarriage. The student pilot further reported that, during the summer of 2021, the engine had lost power “about 8 times.” The loss of engine power occurred after he engine had warmed up. The airplane underwent maintenance after one of these engine power losses. The student pilot reported that the engine lost power again after the maintenance had been performed. According to the student pilot, the accident flight was the only in-flight loss of engine power. A review of the engine maintenance logbook revealed that, on October 8, 2021, when the engine had accumulated 1,629 engine hours, an entry was made stating in part, the following: Engine dies on rollout after landing with the throttle all the way to idle…. Found engine to be excessively rich and the low side fuel pressure was 5.5 PSI [pounds per square inch]. Ran engine, multiple times and set all settings within specs. Low un-metered fuel set to 7.2 psi. Idle set to 750RPM with 40 RPM rise on shutoff, and high side metered set to 16.2 PSI. All work IAW [in accordance with] Continental Motors SID97-3G. The airplane was signed off as airworthy with respect to the work performed and approved to return to service. During a postaccident engine run performed by a mechanic at a hangar at Rexburg-Madison County Airport (RXE), Rexburg, Idaho, the engine started and ran smoothly for about 2 minutes. During the engine run, the mechanic checked the magnetos and the mixture, which were “normal.” The mechanic performed the engine run and the magneto and mixture checks without the Federal Aviation Administration or the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) present. The mechanic indicated that he did not touch the fuel selector switch or any other engine component. He added thatabout 30 gallons of fuel was removed from the airplane’s wings during the recovery. The NTSB’s postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed that the fuel selector lever was jammed in between the “both” position and the right tank position, and the lever could not be rotated in either direction with moderate force. The section of floor underneath the fuel selector lever had been deformed upward. An engine run was not conducted by the NTSB due to propeller damage and the engine run conducted by the mechanic, which precluded a thorough engine examination.