Saint Mary's Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Lusby, Maryland 20657
Monday, July 23, 2001 18:30 EDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The student pilot was maneuvering during a solo flight on a warm, humid day. He performed steep turns, and climbs and descents to maintain cloud clearance. He described numerous power changes, and intermittent use of carburetor heat. The airplane experienced a partial loss of engine power, and the student pilot tried various combinations of throttle, mixture and carburetor heat to restore engine power. The student pilot said, "I pulled the carburetor heat all the way on, and it started to run real rough, so I pushed it back in." Engine power continued to decrease, but the engine continued to run at idle power until the airplane contacted trees during the forced landing. Examination of the engine after the accident revealed that the power controls were attached and intact, and that the throttle, mixture, and carburetor heat controls all operated throughout their respective ranges without binding. A small fuel can was plumbed into the fuel system, and the engine started and ran on the airframe without interruption. Interpolation of an FAA Icing Probability Chart revealed that atmospheric conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to serious icing at glide power.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The student pilot's improper use of carburetor heat.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 7/23/2001
Event Day of the Week Monday
Time of Event 1830
Event Time Zone Eastern Daylight Time
Event City Lusby
Event State MARYLAND
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 20657
Event Date Year 2001
Event Date Month 7
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 382500N
Event Location Longitude 0762700W
Event Location Airport Saint Mary's Airport
Event Location Nearest Airport ID 2W6
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles 7
Degrees magnetic from airport 65
Airport Elevation 143
Weather Briefing Completeness Not pertinent
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1855 Eastern Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 160
Weather Observation Facility ID NHK
Elevation of weather observation facility 40
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 5
Time Zone of the weather observation EDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 5000
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Scattered
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 6
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 28
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 23
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 190
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 9
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29.99
Density Altitude (feet) 1530
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury None
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None 1
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 13368
NTSB Notification Source Pilot
NTSB Notification Date Jul 24 2001 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 800
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information DMS
Date of most recent change to record May 13 2003 12:26PM
User who most recently changed record NTSB\MONR
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Washington, DC

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N21964
NTSB Number IAD01LA083
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? No
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Cessna
Aircraft Model 150L
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 150-74572
Certified Max Gross Weight 1600
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 2
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection 100 Hour
Date of Last Inspection Jun 5 2001 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 82.4
Airframe Hours 8719
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated Yes
ELT Aided Location of Event Site Yes
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name Jim Dayton
Aircraft Owner Street Address 44174 Airport Road #200
Aircraft Owner City California
Aircraft Owner State MD
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 20619
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name --
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City --
Operator State --
Operator Country --
Operator Zip code --
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? --
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Instructional
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code 2W6
Departure City California
Departure State MD
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1715
Departure Time Zone EDT
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code --
Destination City --
Destination State --
Destination Country --
Specific Phase of Flight Cruise
Report sent to ICAO? No
Evacuation occurred No
Date of most recent change to record Aug 19 2002 11:05AM
User who most recently changed record PEAR
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location 11
Runway Length 4150
Runway Width 75
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --