Accident Details
On January 30, 2011, about 1350 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172P, N55212, sustained substantial damage when it impacted terrain after hitting trees during an aborted landing from runway 26 at Lawrence County Airport (HTW), South Point, Ohio. The private pilot and passenger received minor injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by Attitude Aviation under 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed; no flight plan was filed.
Flight Sequence
The flight departed HTW at 1335 en route to Logan, West Virginia. The pilot reported that upon arrival at the airport, he noted the accident airplane had just returned from a flight. He conducted a preflight inspection, observing about 12 gallons of fuel in the right tank and 11 in the left, both free of contaminants. After engine start, he performed an engine run-up with no anomalies. He back-taxied on runway 8 for takeoff. The takeoff was normal; after climbing, he noted the engine suddenly sounded “rough” and “missing.” He did not check engine instruments but executed a steep left turn to return. Realizing he was too high for landing on runway 26, he retarded throttle to idle, extended full flaps, performed a forward slip, and made shallow S-turns to lose altitude. He did not recall applying carburetor heat, though that was his normal practice. On final approach, airspeed was 70-75 knots; the airplane touched down about 2,000 feet down the runway. Applying toe brakes had no effect. As the tree line approached, he applied full power and attempted to retract flaps, but the flaps came “all the way up.” The stall horn sounded at 60 knots as the airplane struck treetops. The left wing dropped, and the nose impacted the ground. The airplane came to rest upright facing the runway. The pilot and passenger evacuated via the passenger door.
Post-Accident Examination
FAA inspectors examined the airplane at the site. Substantial damage was noted; the left wingtip made first ground contact. One propeller blade exhibited tip curl; the other was bent forward with nicks and gouges. The instrument panel showed carburetor heat on, throttle full open, and flaps at 0 degrees. First responders had moved the fuel selector/mixture to OFF. Engine oil was 5.25 quarts; both wing tanks were approximately 3/4 full. Fuel samples were clean and free of contaminants. An engine continuity field test found no anomalies. Spark plugs, filters, fuel lines, magnetos, carburetor, and engine compression were all satisfactory. Aircraft logbook entries showed no discrepancies. A student pilot who had flown the accident airplane earlier reported no engine problems or icing during a 0.6-hour flight. At 1351, weather at HTS (5 nautical miles southwest) was wind 040° at 7 knots, 10 miles visibility, sky clear, temperature 7°C, dew point 1°C, altimeter 30.10. The Carburetor Icing Chart indicates “Serious Icing – Any Power” exists at those temperature and dew point conditions.