Cessna 177 N821KF

Summary

On 16 November 2005 at about 18:45 local time, a Cessna 177 registered N821KF was involved in an accident near New Bern, North Carolina, United States. One person was 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

16 November 2005 at 18:45

Classification

Accident

Location

New Bern, North Carolina, United States

Coordinates

35.0731, -77.0431

Aircraft

Cessna 177

Registration

N821KF

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mount Olive → New Bern

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ATL06CA016

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's failure to activate the carburetor heat during approach resulting in a total loss of engine power due to carburetor ice.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was on an instrument flight rules flight. The controller cleared the pilot for a VOR runway 22 approach at the destination airport. The pilot initiated a descent and did not apply carburetor heat. The Let-Down procedures in the checklist states, "Carburetor Heat-AS REQUIRED to prevent carburetor icing." Upon reaching the minimum descent altitude for the approach, the pilot increased the throttle and did not get an engine response. The pilot realized he could not make the runway and made a forced landing into a river. The surface weather observation at the destination airport revealed the temperature was 75-degrees Fahrenheit and the dew point temperature was 61-degrees Fahrenheit. Review of the Department of Transportation Icing Probability Chart indicates the airplane will encounter serious icing conditions at glide power. The engine was mounted in a test stand and an alternate fuel, and battery source was attached. Engine controls, and magneto grounding wires were installed. The mixture control was safetied wired in the full rich position. The engine was started and ran at idle power. After engine warm up the throttle was advanced to full power and the engine stabilized at takeoff rpm of 2,000. The throttle was returned back to the idle position, the safety wire on the mixture was cut, and the engine was shut down with the mixture control.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.