NTSB Factual Report

On June 27, 2001, at 1500 central daylight time, a Cessna 150L, N5272Q, sustained substantial damage during a partial power landing in a field near Randolph, Kansas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 and was not on a flight plan. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The local flight departed the Manhattan Regional Airport (MHK), Manhattan, Kansas, at approximately 1100.

According to the pilot's written statement, "I was flying back to MHK airport. I was at the northern end of Turtle Creek Lake at around 2500 feet [msl]. I had the RPM's/throttle set between 2200-2300 RPM. The RPM's began to drop, slowly but steadely [steadily]. I pulled my carb-heat and the RPM's dropped even further, making it difficult to sustain strait-level flight. There aren't many farmer's fields in this area (no plowed, flat fields), there were only hay fields with big hay bails scattered in them or natural fields. I chose a field to land in, and upon landing, the nose gear ran into a rain-rut/gully and collapsed."

An inspector with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) performed the post-accident inspection of the airplane and its engine. Five gallons of aviation fuel, blue in color and clear of debris, were drained from the airplane. There was evidence of a fuel spill at the accident site and the FAA inspector estimated that approximately seven gallons of fuel had leaked from the airplane prior to the post-accident inspection. The carburetor accelerator pump was actuated and fuel was discharged from the carburetor. The carburetor was disassembled and the bowl was not contaminated. The fuel gascolator was full of fuel and the fuel filter screen was not contaminated. Engine continuity was established throughout the engine and its accessories by rotating the crankshaft at the propeller flange. There was compression on all four cylinders and both magnetos provided spark on all leads. The oil filter was removed/disassembled and was not contaminated. The induction system was inspected and no contamination or obstructions were found in the air-filter or scat ducting.

No anomalies were found with the airframe or its engine that could be associated with any pre-impact condition.

A weather reporting station, located at MHK, approximately 20 nautical miles southeast of the accident site, reported the weather at 1454 as:

Wind: 170 degrees magnetic at 11 knots

Visibility: 10 statute miles

Sky Condition: Sky Clear

Temperature: 32 degrees Celsius

Dew Point: 17 degrees Celsius

Pressure: 30.15 inches of mercury

According to a carburetor icing probability chart, generated by Transport Canada, the probability of carburetor icing at cruise and descent power was characterized as "light".

NTSB Probable Cause

The unsuitable terrain encountered by the pilot during the forced landing. Factors to the accident were the loss of engine power for undetermined reasons and the rough/uneven terrain condition.