Cessna 175B N8159T

Summary

On 23 April 2003 at about 19:30 local time, a Cessna 175B registered N8159T was involved in an accident near Bonanza, Oregon, United States. 2 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

23 April 2003 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Bonanza, Oregon, United States

Coordinates

42.0833, -121.2219

Aircraft

Cessna 175B

Registration

N8159T

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wellington → Klamath Falls

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA03LA069

1 person had minor injuries.

Separation of the connecting rod cap. Annual maintenance inspections which were disregarded by the owner/pilot was a factor.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that while in cruise flight the engine made a loud sound followed by a partial loss of engine power. Shortly thereafter, smoke started coming in the cockpit and the engine lost complete power. The pilot initiated a forced landing to a county road. During the landing roll, the left wing collided with a power pole. The airplane spun around, the nose gear collapsed and the airplane subsequently nosed over. During the engine inspection, a large hole was found in the crankcase between the number 1 and 2 cylinders. The number 1 connecting rod bearing journal was deeply scored, blue in color and dry. Portions of the number 1 main bearing insert could be observed between the number 1 crank cheek and the number 1 main bearing saddle. The numbers 1 and 2 crank cheeks were blue in color and dry. The number 1 connecting rod was in pieces. The connecting rod cap had a portion of one bolt still present in the cap. The fracture area of the bolt was necked down in diameter and the bolt was blue in color. A matching portion of a bolt with the nut attached was recovered and noted that the fracture area was also necked down in diameter. The pilot reported that the maintenance logbooks had been destroyed in a hangar fire. The pilot also reported that the aircraft had not been maintained in accordance with an annual inspection for some time, as he had not been flying the aircraft since about 1997, when the engine was top overhauled.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.