Cessna 172D N2344U

Summary

On 4 December 2011 at about 21:00 local time, a Cessna 172D registered N2344U, operated by Robert D. Armstrong, was involved in an accident near Belhaven, North Carolina, 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

4 December 2011 at 21:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Belhaven, North Carolina, United States

Coordinates

35.5139, -76.4794

Aircraft

Cessna 172D

Registration

N2344U

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Robert D. Armstrong

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Belhaven → Belhaven

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA12LA101

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was maneuvering the airplane over a marshy area about 700 feet above ground level. The airplane was in a left turn when the engine experienced a total loss of power. The pilot continued the left turn and made a forced landing, during which the airplane struck a small tree, the nose landing gear separated, and the airplane rotated about 180 degrees. Postaccident examination of the engine assembly revealed no malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Review of the local weather conditions and the Federal Aviation Administration’s carburetor icing probability chart indicated that conditions were conducive to serious carburetor icing at glide, but not at cruise, power settings. It was not possible to determine what engine power settings the pilot used during the accident flight maneuvers.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.