Sylacuaga Municipal Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Sylacauga, Alabama 35151
Friday, August 5, 2011 12:09 CDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The student demonstrated a touch-and-go landing and as the airplane climbed through approximately 150 feet above ground level, the engine lost power. The certified flight instructor (CFI) took control of the airplane and attempted to troubleshoot the loss of power while executing a turn to the right, as the forested area off the end of the runway precluded landing straight ahead. The airplane descended below the tops of the trees, and the CFI attempted to follow an S-turn in a road and land in an area free from obstructions. Midway through the turn, the airspeed began to degrade, and the airplane began to stall. The CFI reduced the angle of attack to keep from stalling and losing control and allowed the left wing to come in contact with a tree. The airplane yawed to the left, the right wing contacted trees, and the airplane impacted the ground. A postaccident examination revealed that the exhaust valve for the No.1 cylinder was stuck in the open position which was consistent with the engine's loss of power.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

A stuck exhaust-valve on the number one cylinder which resulted in a loss of engine power.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 8/5/2011
Event Day of the Week Friday
Time of Event 1209
Event Time Zone Central Daylight Time
Event City Sylacauga
Event State ALABAMA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 35151
Event Date Year 2011
Event Date Month 8
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 331019N
Event Location Longitude 0861820W
Event Location Airport Sylacuaga Municipal Airport
Event Location Nearest Airport ID SCD
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles 0
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 569
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1155 Central Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 135
Weather Observation Facility ID ALX
Elevation of weather observation facility 686
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 22
Time Zone of the weather observation CDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 32
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 23
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 260
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) 30.02
Density Altitude (feet) --
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 2
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 29134
NTSB Notification Source FAA Southern ROC
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Nov 23 2011 7:43PM
User who most recently changed record johb
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N7214G
NTSB Number ERA11CA441
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 172K
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 17258914
Certified Max Gross Weight 2300
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 4
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Aug 4 2010 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection --
Airframe Hours 5294
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name ROWE KIP
Aircraft Owner Street Address 231 SABRA DR
Aircraft Owner City ODENVILLE
Aircraft Owner State AL
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 35120-4737
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name Birmingham Flight Center
Operator Same as Owner? No
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? No
Operator Street Address --
Operator City Birmingham
Operator State AL
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 35217
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? No
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 Yes
Departure Airport Code SCD
Departure City Sylacauga
Departure State AL
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1200
Departure Time Zone CDT
Destination Same as Local Flt --
Destination Airport Code BHM
Destination City Birmingham
Destination State AL
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Nov 20 2011 9:24PM
User who most recently changed record johb
Since inspection or accident Last Inspection
Event Location Runway Number and Location 27
Runway Length 5390
Runway Width 100
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --