Cessna 172RG N9627B

Summary

On 9 July 2008 at about 23:46 local time, a Cessna 172RG registered N9627B was involved in an accident near Moorpark, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 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

9 July 2008 at 23:46

Classification

Accident

Location

Moorpark, California, United States

Coordinates

34.2519, -118.8458

Aircraft

Cessna 172RG

Registration

N9627B

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Monica → Santa Monica

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX08LA221

2 people had minor injuries.

A partial loss of engine power due to the disconnection of the throttle control cable from the throttle arm due to the operator's improper maintenance. Contributing to the accident was unsuitable terrain for a forced landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While performing air work during the instructional flight, the student attempted to increase engine power above idle, but upon pushing the throttle control knob forward, the engine's power did not increase. The certified flight instructor (CFI) verified that there was no change in engine power with movement of the throttle control, and he believed that the control had likely become disconnected from the carburetor. The CFI performed a forced landing on the nearby rough terrain. During landing, the airplane impacted a berm and nosed over. An examination of the airplane revealed the throttle control cable was in fact disconnected from its respective carburetor attachment fitting and undamaged. Also, the threaded portion of the cable's attachment end was found without damage. The jam nuts, which normally secure the throttle cable to the carburetor attachment fitting, were found tight against each other, but backed off from their designated location, and were not positioned close enough to the rod end to secure the cable to the carburetor throttle arm. The operator's mechanics were responsible for, and had performed, recent maintenance and inspections of the flight school's airplane. The accident airplane's last 100-hour inspection had been performed on July 3, 2008, 6 days prior to the accident. The security and condition of the engine control connections to the carburetor are part of this inspection.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.