Accident Sequence
On November 8, 2009, at about 1000 central standard time, a Cessna A188B (registration N9368G) was substantially damaged during a forced landing while on final approach to Ripley Airport (25M) in Ripley, Mississippi. The certificated private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
According to the pilot, he performed a preflight inspection, started the engine, and let it warm up for about 5 minutes. He then back-taxied on runway 3 and performed the run-up checklist before takeoff. After flying the traffic pattern, he was on final approach at an altitude of about 500 feet when the engine lost power about 250 feet from the end of the runway. The airplane "went into a right hand dive and hit the ground."
One witness, sitting on his sofa at home, heard the airplane "sputter and pop loudly," then did not hear the engine. When he went outside, he saw the airplane sitting adjacent to his house. Another witness in a field saw the airplane fly over and heard it sputtering and cutting out. The pilot later told that witness that the engine had lost power.
Examination Findings
An on-scene examination by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector revealed that the right wing and engine were separated from the airplane. There was no fuel in the left wing tank, and the little fuel that could be found was contaminated with water. According to a sheriff's department report, the responding officer noted fuel leaking from the wing on the ground upon arrival.
Accident photographs showed one propeller blade almost straight with chordwise scratching, leading edge burnishing, and curling at the tip with part torn off. The other blade had chordwise scratching, s-bending along most of its length, and severe s-bending and curling at the tip. The FAA inspector noted that due to the pilot relinquishing his certificate, no further examination of the airplane was conducted.
Pilot Information
The pilot, age 43, held a private pilot certificate with a single-engine land rating and reported 394 hours of total flight time.
Meteorological Information
Winds recorded at an airport 29 nautical miles southeast of the accident site at 1001 were from 060 degrees true at 11 knots.