Cessna 172RG N751DW

Summary

On 22 May 2024 at about 11:53 local time, a Cessna 172RG registered N751DW was involved in an accident near Chandeleur Island, Louisiana, United States. One person was 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

22 May 2024 at 11:53

Classification

Accident

Location

Chandeleur Island, Louisiana, United States

Coordinates

29.8366, -88.8390

Aircraft

Cessna 172RG

Registration

N751DW

Category

Airplane

Year built

1981

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Houma → Moss Point

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN24LA211

Nobody was injured.

A fatigue failure of the engine oil pressure line, which resulted in the loss of engine oil during the flight and subsequent damage to the nose landing gear support structure during the precautionary landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that about an hour and twenty minutes into the flight he smelled smoke and noticed that the oil pressure was decreasing. He diverted for a precautionary landing. By that time, the oil pressure had dropped to zero and the cabin was filling with smoke. He landed on a beach, and the nose landing gear dug into the sand and collapsed. The landing gear well structure sustained substantial damage during the precautionary landing. A postaccident examination determined that the oil pressure line from the engine to the firewall fitting had fractured due to fatigue. The line was bent about 360° near mid-span, and the line was fractured within the bent segment. Airplane maintenance records revealed that the engine was overhauled and reinstalled on the airframe about a month before the accident. The mechanic noted that the oil line was inspected and reinstalled after the overhaul. The airplane had accumulated 119 hours since the engine overhaul.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.