ANC20CA030

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that while performing touch-and-go maneuvers, he had applied carburetor heat during the second landing. During the takeoff, after the second landing, he turned the carburetor heat off and applied full power. Once airborne, the airplane began to lose power and he manipulated the throttle and carburetor heat levers but was unable to regain power. He chose to make a precautionary landing straight-ahead with partial engine power. During the landing on the remaining runway, the airplane departed the end of the runway, encountered unmaintained snow, and nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing lift strut and empennage. A post-accident engine examination and test run was accomplished by the NTSB and FAA with no malfunctions or failures revealed. The exact probability of carburetor icing was not able to be calculated for the accident airport due to the closest weather observation station being 8 miles away. The pilot however stated that while landing, there was about 3 inches of fresh snow on the runway, and that he believed the propeller wash likely introduced snow into the intake, which created carburetor ice. He added that he should have left the carburetor heat on longer after the second landing. The pilot reported that, while performing touch-and-go landings, he applied carburetor heat during the second landing. During takeoff after the second landing, he turned the carburetor heat off and applied full power. Once airborne, the airplane began to lose power, and he manipulated the throttle and carburetor heat levers, but engine power was not restored. He chose to make a precautionary landing straight-ahead on the runway with partial engine power. During the landing, the airplane departed the end of the runway, impacted snow, and nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right-wing lift strut and empennage. A postaccident engine examination and test run revealed no preaccident malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The exact probability of carburetor icing could not be calculated for the accident airport because the closest weather observation station was 8 miles away. However, the pilot stated that, while landing, there were about 3 inches of fresh snow on the runway and that he believed that propeller wash likely introduced snow into the intake, which created carburetor ice. He added that he should have left the carburetor heat on longer after the second landing. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

• C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Lack of action-Pilot - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Ice/rain protection system-Intake anti-ice, deice-Not used/operated - C
• C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Temp/humidity/pressure-Conducive to carburetor icing-Effect on operation - C