Salt Lake City, UT, USA
N6029N
Cessna T210M
En route to the destination airport the pilot had leaned the mixture. During the turn from base leg to final the pilot noticed his airspeed was getting slow. After advancing the throttle forward and getting no response, the engine lost power. The pilot then retracted the flaps from 20 degrees to full up in order to extend his glide. The airplane subsequently impacted the ground 150 feet from the approach end of the runway and nosed over. The pilot reported that the mixture control was not in the FULL RICH position for landing, and that he didn't use the BEFORE LANDING checklist, which calls for the mixture control to be in the RICH position. A post accident examination of the airplane, which included running the engine, revealed no anomalies which would have precluded normal operations.
On November 16, 2005, approximately 1655 mountain standard time, a single-engine Cessna T210M, N6029N, was substantially damaged after impacting terrain near the Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC), Salt Lake City, Utah. The airplane is owned by PROAIR Inc., and was being operated by the pilot in accordance with Title 14 CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The private pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed, which had departed SLC at 1600 on a local flight. In a written statement dated November 23, 2005, and in telephone conversations with the NTSB investigator-in-charge (IIC), the pilot reported that en route to SLC he leaned the mixture but never set it to the RICH position as called for in the BEFORE LANDING checklist; he was not sure how far out it was. The pilot stated that during his turn from base leg to final while approaching Runway 35 for a full stop landing, he noticed his airspeed was getting slow (85 knots). The pilot reported that he tried adding power but the engine did not respond. The pilot stated, "I heard a pop, like a backfire and the engine quit. The pilot further stated that he then retracted the flaps from 20 degrees to FULL UP to try to extend his glide. The airplane subsequently impacted the ground about 150 feet from the approach end of the runway and nosed over. The pilot reported that he never used the airplane's BEFORE LANDING checklist when operating into SLC. In a written report supplied to the IIC by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) air safety inspector, and in a telephone conversation with a FAA certified airframe and powerplant mechanic who assisted the inspector, an engine run was conduct on November 28, 2005. After a serviceable propeller and a temporary fuel line were attached to the engine, the mixture control was advanced to aid in priming and starting the engine. The engine was subsequently started and ran without interruption. After the mixture control was retarded about one and one-half inches, the approximate position it was found in during the post crash examination, the throttle was pushed in rapidly. The engine backfired for about 3 to 4 seconds before running without interruption. When the mixture control was positioned to the RICH position and the throttle control increased, the engine ran normally.
A loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the pilot's improper in-flight decision not to use the before landing checklist. A factor which contributed to the accident was the improper position of the mixture control.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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