At about 17:03 eastern time, a Mooney M20C lost power and was damaged in a forced landing in a field near the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Airport. The two people aboard were not injured. The pilot reported the cross-country flight had proceeded normally until he applied carb heat and reduced power to descend. The engine began to run roughly and the airplane would not maintain altitude. The outside air temperature was -12 degrees C and the cabin heater was on. In the Mooney M20C, the carb heat and the cabin heat draw hot air from the same shroud around the muffler. The airplane was not equipped with a carb ice detector.
February 06, Wilkes-Barre, Pa. / Mooney M20C
At about 17:03 eastern time, a Mooney M20C lost power and was damaged in a forced landing in a field near the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Airport. The two people aboard were not injured. The pilot reported the cross-country flight had proceeded normally until he applied carb heat and reduced power to descend. The engine began to run roughly and the airplane would not maintain altitude. The outside air temperature was -12 degrees C and the cabin heater was on. In the Mooney M20C, the carb heat and the cabin heat draw hot air from the same shroud around the muffler. The airplane was not equipped with a carb ice detector....
Key Takeaways:
- A Mooney M20C made an uninjured forced landing near Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Airport after losing engine power shortly after the pilot applied carburetor heat for descent.
- The engine began running roughly and the aircraft could not maintain altitude, occurring in -12°C conditions.
- A potential factor is the Mooney M20C's design, where both carb heat and cabin heat draw hot air from the same muffler shroud, alongside the absence of a carb ice detector.
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