Overview
On March 24, 2015, at 1605 central daylight time, a Cessna 172H, registration N8282L, nosed-over in muddy terrain during a forced landing near Circleville, Texas. The forced landing followed a simulated loss of engine power during an instructional flight. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The flight instructor and student pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by the student pilot under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as an instructional flight not operating on a flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight, which departed from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS), Austin, Texas at 1530.
Narrative
The student pilot stated that the purpose of the accident flight was a mock checkride. The run-up prior to departure from AUS was normal, with a small wait for departure as the airplane was fourth in line. At takeoff, the engine did not have normal power and the mixture had to be leaned; upon doing so, the engine performance returned to normal. The flight departed toward the north and performed maneuvers at about 4,500 feet mean sea level prior to a simulated engine failure. The simulated failure was performed by pulling the carburetor heat on and retarding the throttle to idle. The airplane was turned into the wind, about 180 degrees, and best glide speed was established. The student pilot noted a brief discussion of other actions (find a field, squawk 7700, attempt restart, etc.). At about 2,500 feet mean sea level, the flight instructor attempted to clear the engine by pushing the throttle to full power, but nothing happened. The instructor made attempts to adjust the mixture and restart the engine, which did not restart. The instructor took the flight controls and made a landing to a field where the airplane got caught in the mud. The nose gear and propeller initially impacted the ground and the airplane flipped over.
Weather
The weather observation at AUS at 1553 recorded a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius and a dew point of 17 degrees Celsius. According to the New Carburetor Probability Icing Chart, these conditions were in the moderate icing at cruise power and serious icing at descent power region.