Cessna 172 N8984B

Summary

On 6 January 2001 at about 17:30 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N8984B was involved in an accident near Pine Bluff, Arkansas, 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

6 January 2001 at 17:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States

Coordinates

34.2103, -92.0108

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N8984B

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pine Bluff → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW01LA064

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the forced landing on a gravel road. Contributing factors were the pilot's delay in using carburetor heat and the loose gravel.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was flying the airplane at 1,200 feet agl, looking at the ice damage caused by a recent storm. As the airplane was crossing plowed fields, which were surrounded by trees, the engine rpm "dropped to around 1100." The pilot "pushed the fuel mixture all the way to rich, pulled the carburetor heat control, pushed off the cabin heat and pushed the throttle all the way forward," with no increase in engine performance. A forced landing was initiated to a gravel road. During the landing roll, the airplane drifted off the left side of the road into a muddy ditch. The airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted. The pilot reported that the loss of engine power was due to carburetor icing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.