N155AA

On July 18, 1998, at 1800 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172K, N155AA, was substantially damaged during a forced landing to a road near Chateaugay, New York. The student pilot was seriously injured, and visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the instructional flight that originated at Malone-Dufort Airport (MAL), Malone, New York, about 1755, destined for Franklin County State Airport (FSO), Highgate, Vermont. The student pilot had filed a visual flight rules flight plan, for the flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

The student pilot stated he was on the last leg of his solo cross country flight when felt a bump, "something like turbulence." When he looked down at the vertical speed indicator (VSI), he noted a descent rate of 500 feet per minute. He then added power and the engine responded, but his rate of descent increased to 1,500 feet per minute. The student pilot then took off his headset, and could hear the stall warning horn in the back ground, but it did not sound "normal", just slightly buzzing.

According to the student pilot, when he heard the buzzing sound, he had 2,300 engine RPM and was at cruise airspeed, but he pushed the yoke forward to ensure he was not in a stall. The student pilot stated that lowering the nose increased his airspeed, and rate of descent. The student pilot then made a mayday call, and started looking for a forced landing area.

The student pilot added that he could move the yoke forward, but once repositioned, it could not be moved aft. However, he could turn the airplane using the yoke. With partial control of the airplane, the pilot started to maneuver for the only suitable forced landing area, a road. While maneuvering, and 20-30 feet above the road, the airplane struck a powerline causing the nose of the airplane to pitch-up, and airspeed to drop, "like it was attached to a rubber-band." The airplane then hit hard, crushing the landing gear, and breaking the pilot's back, before sliding off the road into a ditch.

The pilot added that he experienced no problems with the engine, and that it responded to throttle movements.

Under the supervision of a Federal Aviation Administration Inspector, the airframe manufacturer's representative established flight control continuity for the elevator and rudder. He also verified control continuity for both ailerons.