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FTW92LA178

1992-07-03 · PORT ISABEL, Texas, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport T31

N46RJ has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (VAN'S AIRCRAFT RV-12, built 2014), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

THE LOSS OF POWER TO THE RIGHT ENGINE DUE TO A FRACTURED CRANKSHAFT WHILE THE LEFT ENGINE WAS SECURED. FACTORS WERE THE DUAL STUDENTS FAILURE TO USE CARBURETOR HEAT WHILE PERFORMING MANEUVERS AND THE UNSUITABLE TERRAIN.

Factual narrative

THE DUAL STUDENT HAD PERFORMED SEVERAL MANEUVERS WITH THE LEFT ENGINE WINDMILLING AND DID NOT USE CARBURETOR HEAT WHEN CARBURETOR ICING CONDITIONS PREVAILED. UPON COMPLETING A MANEUVER AND RETURNING TO CRUISE FLIGHT, A POWER LOSS OCCURRED TO THE LEFT ENGINE. THE INSTRUCTOR TOOK OVER THE FLIGHT CONTROLS AND INITIATED A NORMAL DESCENT TOWARD A NEARBY AIRPORT. DURING THE DESCENT, HE SECURED THE LEFT ENGINE. AS THE AIRPLANE TURNED BASE TO FINAL APPROACH, THE RIGHT ENGINE'S CRANKSHAFT FRACTURED AND A FORCED LANDING HAD TO BE MADE TO UNSUITABLE TERRAIN APPROXIMATELY 1/4 MILE FROM THE RUNWAY. THE LEFT ENGINE WAS SUCCESSFULLY TEST RUN AFTER THE ACCIDENT. A TEARDOWN OF THE RIGHT ENGINE REVEALED THE FRACTURED CRANKSHAFT. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1992_FTW92LA178.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

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