Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Oakland County International Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Pontiac, Michigan 48340
Wednesday, December 3, 2003 10:33 EST
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
The airplane impacted trees and terrain during a forced landing following a loss of engine power while on final approach. The certified flight instructor (CFI) reported that the airplane did not have enough altitude at the time of the loss of engine power to land on the runway and he performed a forced landing to a small field. No pre-impact anomalies were found with the airplane's fuel system, including the fuel tanks, lines, and selector valve during a post-accident examination. The gascolator and carburetor were void of fuel when examined at the accident site. No fuel was recovered from the ruptured left fuel tank or the apparently undamaged right fuel tank. There was no noticeable fuel smell or evidence of a fuel spill at the accident site. The vegetation around the main wreckage was not blighted when examined a day after the accident. No anomalies were found with the engine that would have prevented its operation. The CFI reported that prior to the flight he and his student both visually ascertained the airplane's fuel quantity. He reported that both fuel tanks were half full (13 total gallons), which correlated with the indications displayed on the cockpit fuel quantity gauges. The CFI provided documentation that substantiated the fuel quantity aboard the airplane prior to its last departure. The CFI stated that after the accident his dual-student was partially trapped under the left side of the airplane and "a steady stream of fuel was pouring on his left side." Emergency room documentation confirmed that the dual-student had suffered chemical burns on his left shoulder, chest and back. In the event the airplane departed with 13 gallons of fuel, there should have been sufficient fuel for the approximately 1/2 hour accident flight. The airport temperature and dew point would produce the likelihood of light carburetor icing accumulation during cruise and/or descent engine power settings.
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
The loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. A factor to the accident was the tree line and the unsuitable terrain.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 12/3/2003 |
| Event Day of the Week | Wednesday |
| Time of Event | 1033 |
| Event Time Zone | Eastern Standard Time |
| Event City | Pontiac |
| Event State | MICHIGAN |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 48340 |
| Event Date Year | 2003 |
| Event Date Month | 12 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | Yes |
| Event Location Latitude | 423955N |
| Event Location Longitude | 0832507W |
| Event Location Airport | Oakland County International |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | PTK |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | 0.5 |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | 90 |
| Airport Elevation | 980 |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Unknown |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1053 Eastern Standard Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 90 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | PTK |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 980 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 1 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | EST |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 25000 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | -- |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | -- |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | Broken |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | -- |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | -- |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 10 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | -1 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | -8 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 200 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Wind direction could be determined |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 5 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | -- |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Not Gusting |
| Wind Gust (knots) | -- |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 30.56 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | -1381 |
| Intensity of Precipitation | -- |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | Serious |
| 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 | 1 |
| Injury Total All | 1 |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 15863 |
| NTSB Notification Source | FAA-AGL-ROC |
| NTSB Notification Date | Dec 3 2003 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 1143 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | DMS |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jul 29 2004 7:30AM |
| User who most recently changed record | NTSB\MONR |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | FAA - Detroit FSDO |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N65455 |
| NTSB Number | CHI04LA039 |
| 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 | 152 |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | -- |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 15281562 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 1670 |
| 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 | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | Oct 9 2003 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | 47.3 |
| Airframe Hours | 7907.1 |
| ELT Installed | Yes |
| ELT Activated | Yes |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | No |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | Ronald Jones |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | 50230 Mile End Road |
| Aircraft Owner City | Shelby Township |
| Aircraft Owner State | MI |
| Aircraft Owner Country | USA |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 48317 |
| Operator is an individual? | Yes |
| 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 | Yes |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No |
| Departure Airport Code | 57D |
| Departure City | New Haven |
| Departure State | MI |
| Departure Country | USA |
| Departure Time | 1018 |
| Departure Time Zone | EST |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | crash at destination city |
| Destination Airport Code | PTK |
| Destination City | Pontiac |
| Destination State | MI |
| Destination Country | USA |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Emergency descent/landing |
| Report sent to ICAO? | No |
| Evacuation occurred | No |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jun 4 2004 8:14AM |
| User who most recently changed record | SULP |
| Since inspection or accident | Time of Accident |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | 27L |
| Runway Length | 6200 |
| Runway Width | 150 |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |