Cessna 152 N6436P

Summary

On 22 November 2011 at about 16:55 local time, a Cessna 152 registered N6436P, operated by Ascend Aviation LLC, was involved in an accident near Princeton, Minnesota, 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 November 2011 at 16:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Princeton, Minnesota, United States

Nearest airport

Princeton Municipal Airport (PNM)

Coordinates

45.5597, -93.6081

Aircraft

Cessna 152

Registration

N6436P

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Ascend Aviation LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Princeton → Princeton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN12LA077

Nobody was injured.

The inadequate installation of the threaded insert in the No. 2 cylinder spark plug hole by maintenance personnel, which resulted in a loss of engine power during initial climb.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot conducted two takeoffs and landings without incident. During initial climb after the third takeoff, he heard a loud “pop,” and the airplane started to vibrate severely and lose engine power. He executed a forced landing to a nearby field. The airplane landed hard and nosed over during the landing roll. The examination of the airplane revealed that the lower spark plug from the No. 2 cylinder and its associated threaded insert were missing. The threads in the top portion of the spark plug hole were stripped, and only the bottom three threads remained. No other engine anomalies were observed. The engine maintenance logbook indicated that, 7 days prior to the accident, the Nos. 1 and 2 cylinders had new threaded inserts installed in the lower spark plug holes.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.