Cubcrafters CC11-160 accident near Lancaster, Ohio, August 31, 2018
On August 31, 2018 at about 5:45 pm local time, a 2009 Cubcrafters CC11-160, registered N71BN, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (descent) near Lancaster, Ohio (Fairfield County). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The delayed application of carburetor heat by the pilot which led to accumulation of carburetor ice, eventual loss of engine power, and the subsequent forced landing in high vegetation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 2018 · about 5:45 pm local time
- Place
- Lancaster, Ohio · Fairfield County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cubcrafters CC11-160, built 2009
- Registration
- N71BN · registry record · serial CC11-00107
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that while descending from cruise flight to traffic pattern altitude, the airplane's engine began to run rough. He applied carburetor heat which made the roughness worse and when he then turned off carburetor heat, the engine lost all power. The pilot executed a forced landing to a farm field where the airplane nosed over in the high vegetation. According to a carburetor icing probability chart, the temperature and dew point were in the range of susceptibility for serious carburetor icing at descent power settings. The pilot's report of the accident listed no mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airplane, and a recommendation to apply carburetor heat earlier at the beginning of the descent. Based on the information available the airplane's engine likely lost power due to accumulation of carburetor ice due to the delayed application of carburetor heat.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Fuel related during enroute (descent) defining event
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
- Nose over/nose down during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Temp/humidity/pressure › Conducive to carburetor icing › Effect on equipment
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 20,948 hours in all; 38 in this make and model; 109 in the last 90 days; 42 in the last 30 days; 15,406 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 943 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, September 20, 2017; 36 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cub Crafters CC340 (piston); 943 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 5NC5 Chapel Hill NC at 2:45 pm
- Destination: LHQ Lancaster OH
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.17 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from LHQ, 3 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CEN18LA370.