MIA96LA194

Factual narrative

On July 22, 1996, about 1940 central daylight time, a Cessna 150, N4223U, registered to a private owner, operating as a Title 14 CFR Part 91, training flight, crashed in the vicinity of Brewton, Alabama. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane was substantially damaged. The certified flight instructor and private pilot were not injured. The flight instructor was performing a biannual flight review for the private pilot, and had completed maneuvers at 3,000 feet, before returning to the airport to perform touch-and-go landings. After completing several landings and takeoffs, on runway 06, the flight was in the processes of taking off, and at an altitude of about 300 feet mean sea level, the airplane's engine lost power. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and landed on the shoulder of highway 41. The airplane went into a ditch, and struck a driveway that crossed the ditch. An engine test run was conducted on August 15, 1996, at the facilities of Continental Motors, Mobile, Alabama. According to the FAA inspector's statement the results of the engine test run were "inconclusive." The FAA further stated, that in a conversation with the pilot-in-command (PIC), he stated that he had "experienced carburetor icing which was manifested by him not activating carburetor heat." The PIC had told the FAA, "...he probably did not activate carb heat during takeoff/landing." In addition, the PIC stated, he had experienced carb icing earlier, "so conditions were suitable for icing." The engine tests were conducted with no discrepancies observed. The flight instructor was conducting a biennial flight review for the private pilot, and had been performing maneuvers at 3000 feet before returning to the airport to perform touch and go landings. After completing several landings and takeoffs, the flight was in the process of taking off when at an altitude of about 300 feet mean sea level the engine lost power. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and landed on the shoulder of a highway. The airplane went into a ditch and struck a driveway that crossed the ditch. The pilot-in-command (PIC) stated that he had experienced 'carburetor icing which was manifested by him not activating carburetor heat' during takeoff/landing. The PIC also stated he had experienced carb icing earlier, 'so conditions were suitable for icing.' An engine test run was conducted, and according to the FAA the results of the engine test run were 'inconclusive.' The engine tests were conducted with no discrepancies observed. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12