Cessna 150M N171RD

Summary

On 26 October 2015 at about 18:23 local time, a Cessna 150M registered N171RD, operated by Ameri Air Support, Inc., was involved in an accident near Key Biscayne, Florida, 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

26 October 2015 at 18:23

Classification

Accident

Location

Key Biscayne, Florida, United States

Coordinates

25.7175, -80.1592

Aircraft

Cessna 150M

Registration

N171RD

Category

Airplane

Year built

1976

Engines

1

Operator

Ameri Air Support, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Opa-Locka → Miami

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA16LA027

Nobody was injured.

The fatigue failure of the No. 1 cylinder intake valve, which resulted in the partial loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was conducting a personal flight. The pilot reported that, several minutes after takeoff and while en route to his destination airport, the engine began to run roughly and lose power. He subsequently attempted to restore power without success. He then maneuvered the airplane for a forced landing on the fairway of a golf course. The airplane touched down on wet grass, and the pilot was unable to stop the airplane before it collided with two palm trees, which separated the outboard sections of both wings. Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the intake valve of the No. 1 cylinder had failed due to fatigue, which would have resulted in the partial loss of engine power and engine roughness reported by the pilot. The origin and the extent of the fatigue region could not be determined due to postfracture damage. Further examination of the tip of the valve revealed an abnormal contact wear pattern likely caused by either misalignment relative to the valve seat, valve guide wear, or sticking between the valve stem and the valve guide. A review of maintenance records revealed that new cylinders had been installed when the engine was overhauled about 904 total flight hours before the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.