Cessna 172 N64460

Summary

On 21 June 2019 at about 00:16 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N64460 was involved in an accident near Fullerton, California, 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

21 June 2019 at 00:16

Classification

Accident

Location

Fullerton, California, United States

Nearest airport

Fullerton Muni (FUL)

Coordinates

33.8700, -117.9908

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N64460

Category

Airplane

Year built

1974

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Fullerton → Fullerton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR19LA176

Nobody was injured.

Partial loss of engine power during takeoff due to an age-degraded carburetor heat valve seal, which detached and partially blocked the carburetor air inlet. Contributing to the accident was an inadequate maintenance inspection.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Shortly after takeoff during a practice go-around, the engine lost partial power. With limited time to troubleshoot, the flight instructor maneuvered the airplane for an off-airport landing, and the airplane sustained substantial damage after impacting a street. Postaccident examination revealed that the aft section of the carburetor heat butterfly valve seal had detached and partially blocked the air inlet of the carburetor venturi. The obstruction reduced the amount of air available for combustion, resulting in a rich fuel-to-air mixture, and partial loss of power. The valve seal was composed of a fiber-reinforced rubberized material that degraded and became brittle over the 45-year life of the airplane. The mechanic who performed the last inspection stated that he confirmed the operation and condition of the butterfly valve by observing it through both the airbox assembly forward inlet and the heated air inlet on the rear right side of the unit. He stated that the aft section of the seal is hard to view due to the way it folds behind the butterfly valve and that the only way to clearly see it is through the heated air inlet, which was small.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.