14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, March 24, 2015 in Flushing, MI
Probable Cause Approval Date: 06/01/2015
Aircraft: CESSNA 150, registration: N7987E
Injuries: 1 Minor.
NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.
During a preflight examination, the pilot identified fuel contamination from water, in his airplane's fuel tanks. He removed approximately one quart of water each from the right wing, left wing, belly drain and engine strainer. He thought he removed all the water from the fuel system and started the engine. He performed an engine run up at twenty-two hundred revolutions per minute. After a five minute engine run, the pilot decided the airplane was suitable for flight and initiated a take-off. Upon reaching an altitude of four hundred feet, the engine lost power. He entered an emergency descent and forced landing, subsequently impacting several trees and eventually the terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to wings, fuselage, and empennage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
Loss of engine power due to fuel contamination. A factor contributing to the accident was the pilot's inadequate preflight.
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MT. MORRIS TOWNSHIP, MI -- The 66-year-old pilot of a crashed Cessna 150 told police that mechanical issues caused the plane to go down near Dalton Airport Tuesday, March 24.
Emergency crews were dispatched shortly before 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 24, for a report of a plane down near Sorrento's Food and Spirits, 6395 W. Pierson Road, by Dalton Airport.
The pilot was conscious and alert when crews arrived, and was able to provide police with a narrative of the incident said Mt. Morris Township police Chief Terence Green.
The plane was about 400 feet in the air and about 300 yards from the Dalton Airport where it took off when the pilot said mechanical issues became apparent, police said.
The nature and the cause of the mechanical issues is not known at this time.
As the plane started going down, police said the pilot managed to maneuver into a treeline surrounding a pond on the north side of Pierson Road, behind Health Mart Pharmacy.
The plane was totaled in the crash, and the pilot suffered minor injuries, including a laceration to the forehead, Green said.
"He is very lucky," Green said. "I think it was luck combined with his flying experience that saved his life."
As of about noon, the Mt. Morris Township Fire Department was working to clear fuel from the crash site.
A trail leading to the crash site was taped off as police waited for Federal Aviation Administration investigators to arrive on scene.
The Michigan State Police is heading the investigation. No further details have been released.
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