Cessna 172L N7774G

Summary

On 7 March 2002 at about 21:07 local time, a Cessna 172L registered N7774G was involved in an accident near Bullhead City, Arizona, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 March 2002 at 21:07

Classification

Accident

Location

Bullhead City, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Bullhead/Laughlin Intl. (IFP)

Coordinates

34.8903, -114.6000

Aircraft

Cessna 172L

Registration

N7774G

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bullhead City → Glendale

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX02LA104

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to comply with maintenance/inspection requirements that resulted in a propeller failure.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the takeoff departure the student pilot experienced a catastropic failure of the propeller. Control tower personnel reported that shortly after takeoff, about 800 feet above the runway, the airplane experienced a mechanical problem and returned to the runway. They also noted substantial damage to the front of the engine compartment with debris scattered on the runway. Preliminary examination of the airplane revealed a disintegrated propeller hub with loss of a propeller blade and a severed crankshaft aft of the shaft flange. Substantial damage was evident to the firewall assembly with the engine pointing down about 30 degrees. The pilot stated that there were no prior indications of a discrepancy with the engine or airframe during the run-up or takeoff. He said that the engine ran smoothly until there was a big explosion that "took off the front end." The last documented annual inspection occured in January 2001; an inspection that is required every 12 months per FAR 91.409a (1), as are other inspections and procedures. According to records, the propeller was installed on the airplane during a powerplant modification February 1, 1988, at airplane tachometer reading of 3,966 hours. The propeller had been overhauled August 24, 1987, at 1,971 hours. At the time of the accident, the propeller had accrued 313 hours since overhaul, over 14 years prior. The McCauley factory recommended overhaul is 1,200 hours or 60 months. Examination of the propeller hub revealed a crack progression from a corrosion pit inside the hub to a point of overload failure. McCauley Service Bulletins 213 and 213A were issued January 20, 1994, and June 5, 1998, to provide improved lubrication and corrosion protection, as well as a built-in means of crack detection. According to SB213A, the recommended compliance time for propellers greater than 900 hours or 59-calendar months since last overhaul/penetrant inspection is within the next 100 hours, or at the next annual inspection, whichever occurs first.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.