Cessna 172 N8311X
27 December 2020 · Pleasant Valley, New York, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 27 December 2020 at about 20:20 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N8311X was involved in an accident near Pleasant Valley, New York, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 20:20
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Pleasant Valley, New York, United States
- Nearest airport
- Sky Acres Airport (44N)
- Coordinates
- 41.7179, -73.7498
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172
- Registration
- N8311X
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 1961
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- ERA21LA091
People
1 person had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Probable cause
A total loss of engine power due to failure of the magnetos, which were not overhauled in accordance with the manufacturer’s time specifications.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The student pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings when the engine sputtered and lost all power while on final approach. The student pilot tried to restart the engine to no avail and subsequently made a forced landing in a wooded area. The airplane came to rest inverted in swampy terrain amongst trees. The magnetos were removed from the engine during the postaccident examination, and they failed to produce sparks when tested. Further examination of the magnetos revealed extensive corrosion present on the coil laminations between the coil and magnet. It is likely the rotor was unable to transmit electricity to the coil and therefore the magneto was unable to produce a spark. The magneto manufacturer maintenance manual and overhaul manual states the magneto time in service allowance is the time before overhaul for the engine or 12 years. The magnetos had not been overhauled and were 14 and 23 years old. No other engine anomalies were identified that would have prevented normal operation.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Cessna 172 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Sep 2020 | Cessna 172 | Higginsville, Missouri, United States | University of Central Missouri | No injuries | - |
| 6 Feb 2020 | Cessna 172 | Palmer, Alaska, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 2 May 2020 | Cessna 172 | Fresno, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 2 Aug 2020 | Cessna 172 | Conway, Arkansas, United States | Barrett Aviation | No injuries | - |
| 3 Oct 2020 | Cessna 172 | Hinckley, Minnesota, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 31 Dec 2020 | Cessna 172R | Hope, Alaska, United States | Elmendorf Air Force Base Aero Club | Minor injuries | - |
All 12,209 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Oct 2020 | Socata TBM700 | Corfu, New York, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 4 Oct 2020 | Cessna 182 | Beechhurst, New York, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 4 Oct 2020 | Piper PA28 | Fulton, New York, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 3 May 2020 | Waco QCF | Shirley, New York, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 16 Feb 2020 | Cessna 172 | Rochester, New York, United States | Schubert Brothers Aviation Inc | No injuries | - |
| 14 May 2020 | Bell OH-58C | Livingston, New York, United States | Air One Mobility Inc | No injuries | - |