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LAX89LA323

1989-09-25 · TUCSON, Arizona, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport TUS

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER DUE TO THE PILOT'S IMPROPER USE OF THE AIRCRAFT'S POWERPLANT CONTROLS. A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR WAS THE PILOT'S LIMITED EXPERIENCE IN A CESSNA 177RG.

Factual narrative

THE PILOT REPORTED THAT DURING A NIGHT VISUAL APPROACH, ABOUT 4-5 MI FROM THE AIRPORT, THE ENGINE LOST POWER. A FORCED LANDING WAS MADE IN A FIELD AND THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH A TELEPHONE POLE. NO PRE-IMPACT RELATED MALFUNCTIONS WERE FOUND IN THE ENGINE, AND THE ENGINE RAN SUCCESSFULLY AFTER THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT LATER STATED THAT THE ENGINE HAD CONTINUED TO OPERATE THROUGHOUT THE APPROACH AND LANDING. THE PILOT HAD 5 HRS IN MAKE/MODEL. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_LAX89LA323.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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