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| NTSB Identification: NYC98LA037. The docket is stored in the (offline) NTSB Imaging System. |
| Accident occurred Monday, December 01, 1997 at MORICHES, NY |
| Aircraft: Cessna A152, registration: N758YR |
| Injuries: 2 Serious |
| Event: 20001208X09358 Status: Final Report Approved On Monday, February 28, 2000 |
| NTSB Preliminary Narrative (6120.19A) |
| On December 1, 1997, at 1900 eastern standard time, a Cessna A152, N758YR, was substantially damaged during a forced landing and |
| collision with a light pole near Moriches, New York. The certificated flight instructor and private pilot received serious injuries. Visual |
| meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight that originated at the Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK), New York, about 1745. No flight plan |
| had been filed for the instructional flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. |
| According to the flight instructor, the purpose of the flight was to provide the private pilot with an area familiarization and begin "a week-long |
| biennial flight review." The instructor preflighted the airplane and measured the fuel quantity with a calibrated stick. He measured 8 gallons of |
| fuel in one tank, and about 7 gallons in the other tank. |
| The instructor stated that after cruising at 2,700 feet for about 1 hour, "...we lost all or most engine power output. All attempts to restore engine |
| power were unsuccessful. The engine backfired 4 or 5 times after that." He tuned in the Brookhaven Airport frequency and turned on the |
| runway light. He further stated, "I decided that I could not make the runway 33 fighting strong winds, and I turned toward a well lighted parking |
| lot...turning short base I saw high trees on the west side of the site and elected to land on the east side which turned out to be a narrow road." |
| During the final approach the airplane's left wing struck a light pole and the instructor then "lost control." |
| According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Inspector, examination of the airplane revealed that one wing fuel tank was ripped open, |
| but neither wing fuel tank contained fuel and there was no odor of fuel on the ground. The FAA Inspector also stated that one of the police |
| officers that initially responded to the accident, also a pilot, reported no odor of fuel at the scene. Examination of the propeller revealed no |
| rotational scoring on the blades. |
| The instructor reported that the airplane's fuel consumption was about 5.5 gallons per hour, and that of the 26 gallon fuel capacity, 24.5 gallons |
| were useable. |
| The instructor provided a refueling summary of the accident airplane, which included Hobbs and engine tachometer hours, and the number of |
| gallons added during the past 32 hours of operations. The summary did not include any dates; however, the instructor stated that this was the |
| current refueling record of the airplane. Hand written notes on the summary revealed that most refuelings did not fill the tanks up, but refueled |
| the airplane to 18, 19, or 20 gallons. At a Tach time of 48.9, the fuel tanks were filled. The next refueling of the tanks to a full level occurred at a |
| Tach time of 56.6. During the 7.7 hours, 52.9 gallons of fuel were added. When divided out, this provided a rate of 6.87 gallons per hour (GPH). |
| According to the summary, the last refueling occurred at a Tach time of 66.1, where the airplane was refueled to a total of 20 gallons. At the |
| time of the accident, the approximate Tach time was 68.0. |
| According to a carburetor icing probability chart, the conditions at the time of the accident were conducive for "serious icing at cruise power." |
| NTSB Final Narrative (6120.4) |
| The instructor preflighted the airplane and measured the fuel quantity with a calibrated stick, with 8 gallons in one tank, and 7 gallons in the other |
| tank. After takeoff, the airplane had been cruising at 2,700 feet for about 1 hour when the instructor reported that they lost all or most engine |
| power. The engine backfired 4 or 5 times and all attempts to restore engine power were unsuccessful. The instructor performed a forced |
| landing to a parking lot and the airplane's left wing struck a light pole. Examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration Inspector |
| revealed that one wing fuel tank was ripped open, but neither wing fuel tank contained fuel and there was no odor of fuel on the ground. |
| Refueling records revealed that after the airplane had been refueled to 20 total gallons, it was flown about 8/10 hours before the accident flight. |
| The average fuel consumption of the engine had been 6.8 gallons per hour. According to a carburetor icing probability chart, the conditions at |
| the time of the accident were conducive for 'serious icing at cruise power.' |
| NTSB Probable Cause Narrative |
| A loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. |
| Occurrences and Sequence of Events |
| Occurrence: 1, LOSS OF ENGINE POWER(TOTAL) - NONMECHANICAL |
| Phase of Operation: CRUISE |
| Sequence of Events for Occurrence Number: 1 |
| 1 (Finding) WEATHER CONDITION / CARBURETOR ICING CONDITIONS / (0) |
| 2 ( Cause ) REASON FOR OCCURRENCE UNDETERMINED / / |
| Occurrence: 2, FORCED LANDING |
| Phase of Operation: DESCENT - EMERGENCY |
| Occurrence: 3, IN FLIGHT COLLISION WITH OBJECT |
| Phase of Operation: DESCENT - EMERGENCY |
| Sequence of Events for Occurrence Number: 3 |
| 1 (Finding) OBJECT / POLE / (0) |
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