Cessna 150J N51242

Summary

On 21 April 2016 at about 20:15 local time, a Cessna 150J registered N51242 was involved in an accident near Bixby, Oklahoma, 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

21 April 2016 at 20:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Bixby, Oklahoma, United States

Nearest airport

Richard Lloyd Jones Jr (RVS)

Coordinates

35.9931, -95.8867

Aircraft

Cessna 150J

Registration

N51242

Category

Airplane

Year built

1968

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Rolla/Vichy → Tulsa

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN16LA162

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined, as the fuel state of the airplane at the time of the accident could not be verified, and postaccident examination of the engine did not provide adequate information.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was relocating the recently-purchased airplane, and stated that he departed on the 3-hour flight with full fuel tanks, which provided an endurance of about 5 hours. During the descent to the destination airport, the pilot advanced the mixture control to full rich, applied carburetor heat, and began to retard the throttle; the engine then suddenly experienced a total loss of power. The pilot restarted the engine multiple times, but the engine would not sustain power. The pilot subsequently conducted a forced landing to a road, during which the airplane struck a sign, resulting in substantial damage. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the wings had been removed for transport, and an unquantified amount of fuel was drained from the fuel tanks. The gascolator contained 2 to 3 ounces of fuel. The fuel line to the carburetor was removed and no fuel residue was observed. The carburetor was disassembled and the bowl contained about one ounce of fuel. The engine was rotated by hand and displayed continuity and compression throughout. Although a compression test revealed that the Nos. 1 and 2 cylinders displayed low compression, the test was conducted on a cold engine, which was contrary to manufacturer guidance and could have provided unreliable readings. No other anomalies were observed with the engine, and a definitive reason for the loss of power could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.