Hard landing Accident Cessna U206G Stationair N156SA,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 165453
 
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Date:Friday 11 April 2014
Time:18:00
Type:Silhouette image of generic C206 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Cessna U206G Stationair
Owner/operator:Laser Mapping Specialists Inc
Registration: N156SA
MSN: U20605670
Year of manufacture:1980
Total airframe hrs:3370 hours
Engine model:Continental IO-520 Series
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Category:Accident
Location:Trevilians, Virginia -   United States of America
Phase: Landing
Nature:Unknown
Departure airport:Louisa, VA (LKU)
Destination airport:Louisa, VA (LKU)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The pilot reported that, during the flight before the accident flight, he noted that the oil pressure was slowly fluctuating, so he chose to change the engine oil and filter. Airport personnel provided the supplies and observed the pilot perform the maintenance. The pilot removed and then opened the oil filter and “an excessive amount of metal” was observed. The pilot’s mechanic had replaced four cylinders about 4 months earlier, and the pilot assumed that the metal was chrome from the overhauled cylinders and was the result of “break-in.” Although airport personnel expressed concerns about the metallic debris, the pilot chose to finish the oil change and continue with his next flight. About 30 minutes after departure, the engine made “a strange sound,” and it lost power about 20 seconds later. The pilot conducted a forced landing, and the airplane landed hard in an open field, which resulted in structural damage to the airframe.
Disassembly and examination of the engine revealed that the engine cylinder through bolts on the Nos. 1 through 5 cylinders were significantly undertorqued. The crankshaft was fractured near the No. 2 main bearing. The areas adjacent to the No. 2 bearing on the inside of the engine case exhibited rotational scoring, indicating that bearing movement had occurred before the crankshaft failure. The Nos. 1 and 3 main bearings also exhibited evidence that bearing movement had occurred before the engine failure. It is likely that the mechanic did not properly torque the through bolts when he replaced the four cylinders, which allowed the bearings to move and led to the eventual failure of the crankshaft.

Probable Cause: The pilot's decision to continue operation of the airplane with known mechanical issues (fluctuating oil pressure and metal in the oil filter), which was the result of undertorqued cylinder through bolts. Contributing to the accident was the mechanic's failure to properly torque the engine through bolts, which led to the eventual failure of the crankshaft.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: ERA14LA193
Status: Investigation completed
Duration:
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N156SA

FAA register: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=156SA

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
13-Apr-2014 23:35 Geno Added
14-Apr-2014 23:14 Geno Updated [Registration, Cn, Operator, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative]
22-Apr-2014 23:51 Geno Updated [Nature, Source]
21-Dec-2016 19:28 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
29-Nov-2017 14:02 ASN Update Bot Updated [Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]

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