Cessna 150 N19524

Summary

On 30 January 2020 at about 02:00 local time, a Cessna 150 registered N19524 was involved in an accident near Big Lake, Alaska, 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

30 January 2020 at 02:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Big Lake, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Big Lake (BGQ)

Coordinates

61.5342, -149.8278

Aircraft

Cessna 150

Registration

N19524

Category

Airplane

Year built

1973

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Talkeetna → Big Lake

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC20CA016

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to apply full carburetor heat while operating in conditions conducive to carburetor icing, which resulted in a total loss of engine power, a forced landing, and impact with a tree.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that while performing a straight-in visual approach, he applied partial carburetor heat, and retarded the throttle for the descent. The airplane became low on the approach profile and the pilot increased the throttle and the engine subsequently "coughed" and then lost all power. He attempted to make a forced landing on a road, but the left wing struck a tree branch and the airplane subsequently impacted a snowbank and then the road. The wings and fuselage sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. He confirmed that the fuel tanks had sufficient fuel for the flight. The pilot reported that the accident could have been prevented had he applied full carburetor heat. The exact probability of carburetor icing was not able to be calculated for the accident site due to the closest weather observation station being 9 miles away. The relative humidity level at that weather station was 87% at an ambient temperature of 12°F at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.