Event WPR17LA216

Factual narrative

On September 25, 2017, about 1715 local time, a Cessna 172P airplane, N5448K, sustained substantial damage when it impacted terrain following a loss of engine power near Guam International Airport (PGUM), Tamuning, Guam. The commercial pilot and two passengers were not injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by Sky Guam Aviation, Inc. as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 sightseeing flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local flight that originated from PGUM at 1650. The pilot reported that the accident flight was scheduled as a 20-minute local sightseeing flight, and that it was his last flight of the day. He conducted a normal preflight and reported no issues during the beginning of the flight. While enroute, the pilot noticed fire sparks with smoke on the left side and smoke started to fill the cabin. The pilot opened the left window to disperse the smoke. He did not observe fire, but the smoke continued to accumulate in the cockpit. Shortly after, the engine lost power and the airplane started to shake violently. The pilot decided to return to the airport and made a mayday call to inform the tower of the engine failure. While enroute to the airport, he attempted to restart the engine, but he was unsuccessful. The pilot realized he did not have sufficient altitude to land on the runway and initiated a forced landing to a nearby field. The airplane landed short of the airport perimeter fence. Due to the location of the accident, representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration were not available for post-accident examination oversight. A local mechanic and an employee from Sky Guam Aviation, Inc. conducted the post-accident examination of the airplane. They stated that they found evidence of oil around the No.4 engine cylinder and observed that the intake pipes were wet and shiny. They found that the oil dipstick/filler cap was not screwed into the filler neck, and the oil quantity indicated zero. The pilot told them that he checked the oil level before the first flight of the day and had flown the airplane ten more times that day but did not check the oil level prior to those flights. The Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH) required the pilot to check the engine oil quantity and confirm that the oil dipstick/filler cap is secured before each flight. The commercial pilot reported that, during the local sightseeing flight, he noticed fire sparks and smoke starting to fill the cabin. Shortly after, the engine lost all power, and the airplane started to shake violently. The pilot decided to return to the airport, and while en route, he attempted to restart the engine without success. When he realized there was insufficient altitude to land on the runway, he initiated a forced landing to a nearby field. The airplane impacted terrain short of the airport perimeter fence and sustained substantial damage. An engine examination revealed that the engine oil filler cap was not secured, and evidence of oil was found around the No. 4 cylinder and intake pipes. The pilot reported that he checked the oil level before the first flight of the day and then flew 10 more flights that day but did not check the oil level before those flights. The Pilot's Operating Handbook indicated that the oil quantity is to be confirmed and the oil filler cap is to be secured before each flight. It is likely that the pilot did not properly secure the oil filler cap during the preflight inspection before the first flight of the day and did not verify that it was secured before any of the following 10 flights, which resulted in a gradual leak of engine oil and subsequent engine seizure. Further, his failure to check the oil before the following 10 flights prevented him from identifying that the oil had leaked out and was at an insufficient level. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Aircraft-Aircraft power plant-Eng oil sys (airframe furnish)-Quantity-Not inspected - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Inspection-Preflight inspection-Pilot - C