Cessna 182RG N600CT

Summary

On 6 April 1996 at about 03:54 local time, a Cessna 182RG registered N600CT was involved in an accident near Beaver Dam, Arizona, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 were seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 April 1996 at 03:54

Classification

Accident

Location

Beaver Dam, Arizona, United States

Coordinates

36.8996, -113.9398

Aircraft

Cessna 182RG

Registration

N600CT

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Grand Canyon → Las Vegas

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

LAX96FA155

4 people were seriously injured.

an engine failure due to oil starvation resulting from the pilot's improper aircraft preflight. A factor relating to the accident was: failure of the operator to ascertain that proper maintenance was performed after the airplane's high oil consumption rate was reported.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While flying at 12,500 feet msl over a mountainous area, the engine propeller began to overspeed, and then the engine quit. The pilot executed an emergency landing, and the airplane collided with a tree. Examination of the engine revealed that Nos. 3, 4, 5, and 6 connecting rods separated and their journals displayed oil starvation and high temperature distress signatures. The examination also showed that the oil consumption emanated from the No. 6 cylinder. The airplane squawk list and previous fueling records showed that the engine had a high oil consumption rate. The pilot that flew the airplane on a flight a week before the accident reported that in a 5-hour flight, the engine consumed 10 quarts of oil. One of the passengers reported that she saw the pilot check the oil before departing on the accident flight. The accident pilot said that the oil level was between 7 and 8 quarts before departing on the accident flight; he told his insurers that the oil level was about 5 quarts before departing on the last segment of the accident flight. The pilot said that he checked the oil by pulling the dipstick once. The pilot that previously flew the airplane said that he had to insert and remove the oil dipstick three times before obtaining an accurate level. He said that the oil viscosity on the dipstick tube was so thick it indicated a higher level.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.