Cessna 152 N89904

Summary

On 25 April 2018 at about 22:14 local time, a Cessna 152 registered N89904, operated by Guest Aviation LLC, was involved in an accident near Cullman, Alabama, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 April 2018 at 22:14

Classification

Accident

Location

Cullman, Alabama, United States

Coordinates

34.1528, -86.6347

Aircraft

Cessna 152

Registration

N89904

Category

Airplane

Year built

1978

Engines

1

Operator

Guest Aviation LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cullman → Gadsden

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN18LA151

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s inadvertent engine shutdown due to excessive leaning of the engine and his subsequent inability to restart the engine.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After reaching a cruise altitude about 2,500 ft above ground level, the private pilot pulled the engine mixture control toward the lean position too far, and the engine lost total power. The pilot pushed the engine mixture control to the full rich position and attempted unsuccessfully to restart the engine. After one restart attempt, he chose to execute a forced landing, during which the airplane nosed over and sustained damage to the right wing. Postaccident examination and an engine test run revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot did not activate carburetor heat during the flight or after the engine lost power. At the time of the power loss, nearby weather was conducive to the formation of serious carburetor ice at descent power; however, because of the airplane’s altitude and the limited amount of time available, the investigation could not determine whether carburetor icing contributed to his inability to restart the engine. It is likely that the pilot leaned the mixture too much, which resulted in the engine losing total power.    

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.