Cessna 182 N4861D accident near Anchorage, Alaska

Probable cause

The total loss of engine power due to carburetor icing, which resulted from the pilot’s failure to use carburetor heat.

NTSB analysis

The private pilot was conducting a personal cross-country flight. The pilot reported that he was flying the airplane over an inland waterway when the engine began surging. The pilot switched fuel tanks, but the engine continued to surge and then lost total power. The pilot subsequently executed a forced landing on a highway, which resulted in substantial damage to the wing.

After the accident, the pilot and a mechanic started the airplane, and the engine ran smoothly at various power settings. The atmospheric conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to the accumulation of serious carburetor icing at glide power and moderate icing at cruise power. Therefore, it is likely that carburetor ice formed, which caused the engine to lose power, and that the pilot did not apply carburetor heat.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ANC15LA046 for the full record.