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| NTSB Identification: SEA98LA022. The docket is stored in the (offline) NTSB Imaging System. |
| Accident occurred Tuesday, December 09, 1997 at SILVERDALE, WA |
| Aircraft: Cessna 150J, registration: N51369 |
| Injuries: 2 Uninjured |
| Event: 20001208X09384 Status: Final Report Approved On Monday, May 04, 1998 |
| NTSB Preliminary Narrative (6120.19A) |
| On December 9, 1997, approximately 1600 Pacific standard time, a Cessna 150J, N51369, nosed over during a forced landing near Silverdale, |
| Washington. The certified flight instructor and her student were not injured, but the aircraft, which was being leased by Alternate Air, Inc., |
| sustained substantial damage. The 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight, which departed Boeing Field, Seattle, Washington, about 45 minutes earlier, |
| was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan had been filed, and there was no report of an ELT activation. |
| In a written statement, the flight instructor reported that during the recovery from the third of a series of power-off stalls, the engine began to |
| run rough. The flight instructor stated that power was applied smoothly and carburetor heat was turned off as part of the stall recovery |
| procedure. The engine continued to run rough and after approximately five seconds, the engine quit. The pilot stated that she took over the |
| controls from the student pilot and attempted to restart the engine. During the first attempt, the propeller turned twice, but the engine did not fire. |
| She then pulled the starter handle for a second restart attempt, but when she pulled it, the handle separated from the panel. At that point she |
| picked out a field in which to land. The touchdown, which was made on the main gear, was uneventful, but when the nose gear was lowered |
| onto the soft terrain, it sank in and the aircraft nosed over. |
| During telephone interviews with both the flight instructor and student, they reported that carburetor heat was used during each power-off |
| maneuver. |
| A METAR observation taken at 1615, at Bremerton Airport, which is about seven miles south of the accident site, recorded a temperature of |
| seven degrees Celsius and a dew-point of six degrees Celsius. According to the Carburetor Icing Probability Chart, the aircraft was operating in |
| temperature and humidity conditions where severe icing is probably at both cruise and climb power. |
| After the aircraft was recovered from the field, a Federal Aviation Administration Inspector from the Seattle Flight Standards District Office |
| supervised an engine test run. The engine was started and run-up to 2500 rpm. The operation was smooth, with no discrepancies noted. At |
| 1700 rpm, both magnetos were checked. The right hand magneto position indicated a 90 rpm drop, and the left hand magneto position indicated |
| a 125 rpm drop. The carburetor heat control was positioned to the "on" position, and a 110 rpm drop was observed. The mixture control |
| operated correctly. The engine pull-to-start knob was inspected and it was found that the knob had pulled off the metal shaft and the metal shaft |
| had pulled away from the cable to the starter lever. |
| NTSB Final Narrative (6120.4) |
| The flight instructor stated that as the student pilot was recovering from the third of a series of power-off stalls, the engine began to run rough. |
| Power was applied smoothly and carburetor heat was turned off. The engine continued to run rough, and after approximately five seconds, the |
| engine quit. The flight instructor took over the controls from the student and attempted to restart the engine. During the second restart attempt, |
| the flight instructor pulled the starter handle, however, the handle separated from the panel. A forced landing was made to a soft field where a |
| successful touchdown was accomplished, but during the landing roll, the nose wheel dug in and the airplane nosed over. During the |
| postaccident inspection, the engine was run to 2500 rpm. The engine operated smoothly, with no discrepancies noted. Both magnetos were |
| checked and found operational. The carburetor heat control was checked and found operational. The engine pull-to-start knob was inspected |
| and it was found to have pulled off the metal shaft that runs through the panel, and the metal shaft had pulled away from the cable that runs to |
| the starter lever. |
| NTSB Probable Cause Narrative |
| Ice accumulation in the carburetor throat. Factors include conditions conducive to serious carburetor icing, an inoperative starter due to a |
| separated pull-to-start knob, and soft terrain at the location of the forced landing. |
| Occurrences and Sequence of Events |
| Occurrence: 1, LOSS OF ENGINE POWER |
| Phase of Operation: MANEUVERING |
| Sequence of Events for Occurrence Number: 1 |
| 1 ( Factor ) WEATHER CONDITION / CARBURETOR ICING CONDITIONS / (0) |
| 2 ( Cause ) FUEL SYSTEM, CARBURETOR / ICE / (0) |
| 3 ( Factor ) ENGINE ACCESSORIES, ENGINE STARTER / INOPERATIVE / (0) |
| Occurrence: 2, FORCED LANDING |
| Phase of Operation: EMERGENCY DESCENT/LANDING |
| Occurrence: 3, NOSE OVER |
| Phase of Operation: LANDING - ROLL |
| Sequence of Events for Occurrence Number: 3 |
| 1 ( Factor ) TERRAIN CONDITIONS / SOFT / (0) |
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