VINCENT, OH, USA
N16095
Cessna 150
The 30-hour student pilot and certified flight instructor (CFI) were on a cross-country flight, when on the 2nd leg of the flight, a loss of engine power occurred followed by a forced landing. When describing the first leg of the flight, the student stated, 'During most of this flight it was obvious to me that we had very little idea of our position. The planned 40 minute flight actually took us a total of one hour and twenty minutes.' According to the student, 'The fuel level was down about 4 inches...' from the refueling port before departure. The student stated that, 'For the most part, we had no idea of our position during the 2nd leg of this flight either.' He went on to say that about one hour and 15 minutes had elapsed after taking off on the planned 40 minute return leg when '...the engine started revving and then sputtering over and over. As we were looking for a place to land, the engine stopped completely at about 1000 (feet).' The student remembered that he pointed out to the CFI a large open field that he judged suitable for an emergency landing site. He indicated that he was shocked and disappointed the CFI seemed instead determined to land at another site that the student could not identify, which was a small county road located next to a creek.' The airplane subsequently struck a tree, a stream bed, and the roadway, where it came to rest.
On July 10, 1996, at 1515 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 150, N16095, was destroyed when it collided with trees and terrain during a forced landing near Vincent, Ohio. The certificated flight instructor and the student pilot sustained serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, no flight plan was filed. The dual instructional flight was conducted under 14 CFR 91. The flight originated from Harry Cleaver Field (PHD), in New Philadelphia, Ohio, at approximately 1400 EDT on a cross country flight, with an intended destination of Marshall County Airport (74D), in Moundsville, West Virginia. After the accident, the student pilot stated, "This flight really began a few minutes after 11:00 am on [July 10, 1996] when I departed the 74D airport on a cross country flight with [name], a flight instructor. The plan was to study and use a combination of Pilotage and Dead Reckoning as a method of navigation. During most of this flight it was obvious to me that we had very little idea of our position. The planned 40 minute flight actually took us a total of one hour and twenty minutes." While discussing the return flight, the student pilot reported, "The flight from PHD that began some time around 2 pm to the point that we ran out of fuel at approximately 3:30 pm was conducted in the same manner." "For the most part, we had no idea of our position during the second leg of this flight either. [The instructor pilot], although he kept playing with the VOR [VHF Variable Omnidirectional Range] receivers, could not determine our position." The student pilot added that during a turn "...to correct our course...I noticed the engine was sputtering. I told [the instructor pilot] I heard the motor sputter and he said he didn't hear anything, he said everything was OK. After about 2 minutes, the engine started revving and then sputtering over and over. As we were looking for a place to land, the engine stopped completely at about 1000 [feet]." One Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Inspector's Record of Conversation with the student pilot stated, "[The student pilot] remembers that he pointed out to [the instructor pilot] a large open field that [the student pilot] judged suitable for an emergency landing site. [The student pilot] stated that he was shocked and disappointed that [the instructor pilot] seemed instead determined to land at another site that he could not identify and that turned out to be a small county road located next to a creek." The airplane subsequently struck a tree, a stream bed, and the roadway where it came to rest. During a post accident interview with an FAA inspector, the student pilot revealed that the pilot did not verify the fuel level in the tanks prior to departure from Moundsville (74D) or New Philadelphia (PHD). When questioned about how close the fuel level was to the refueling port prior to departure from Moundsville (74D), the student pilot replied, "The fuel level was down about 4 inches." The instructor pilot was also interviewed by FAA inspectors after the accident. The inspectors terminated the interview after 10 minutes because the pilot "...was unable to answer the questions with any degree of reliability. During the accident, [the instructor pilot] sustained head injuries and they may have been the cause for the inconsistencies in his answers during the interview." The PILOT/OPERATOR REPORT (NTSB Form 6120.1/2) that was sent to the instructor pilot's last known address was returned to this office by the U.S. Postal Service. The operator of the aircraft reported that the pilot was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital to recover from his head injuries. A post accident inspection of the airplane by FAA Airworthiness Safety Inspectors revealed no mechanical anomalies. When referencing the fuel system, the report stated, "The R/H and L/H fuel tanks were standard range tanks (13 gallons each) with 1.75 gallons unusable. Both tanks were sumped until empty and the following readings were noted, R/H tank had .75 gallons, and the L/H tank had 1.75 gallons remaining."
the instructor's inadequate supervision by allowing the student and himself to become lost, his inadequate inflight planning/decision by failing to ensure the airplane was safely landed before fuel was exhausted, and his selection of unsuitable terrain for a forced landing.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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