N781FM

On February 22, 2025, at 1545 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172P, N781FM, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Mayo, Maryland. The student pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 solo instructional flight.

According to the student pilot, the airplane departed Delaware Airpark (33N) at 1509, enroute to Tipton Airport (FME), Odenton, Maryland. Preliminary ADS-B data showed that the airplane reached the mouth of the Chester River and was at an altitude of about 2,300 ft when it began a gradual descent in a cruise profile about 90 knots (kts). The airplane crossed the river mouth to the northern tip of Kent Island, where the descent continued. About 1536, the airplane turned and paralleled the Chesapeake Bay Bridge about 1,800 ft as it turned westbound over the Chesapeake Bay. Before it reached the bay’s western shore, the airplane turned southwest and paralleled the shoreline as it entered a gradual descent abeam Hackett Point, Maryland, about 1539.

About 1543 at 1,200 ft, the pilot announced “engine failure” over the radio. According to the pilot, it felt like the engine was “pulled to idle.”

The air traffic controller offered an airport 4 miles west of the airplane’s position as a potential forced landing location, but the pilot replied that he would not reach it and was going to land on a road. The pilot described his manipulation of the throttle and mixture levers to restore power, without success, and confirmed the fuel selector was in the “Both” position. He then, “pulled the carb heat with no success and pushed it back in.”

The student pilot described selecting a road for the forced landing, preparing for touchdown, and the right wing striking trees about 10 ft above the surface. The airplane continued striking trees after ground contact and came to rest upright in a “ravine.” The pilot egressed the airplane without assistance.

The student pilot was issued a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) first-class medical certificate February 29, 2024. He reported 71.8 total hours of flight experience, 46.6 hours of which was in the accident airplane make and model.

The airplane was manufactured in 1980 and was powered by a Lycoming O-360-A4M 180-horsepower engine. Its most recent 100-hour inspection was completed December 13, 2024, at 9,986.0 total aircraft hours. The tachometer showed 10,080.6 total aircraft hours at the accident site.

Initial examination of the airplane by FAA aviation safety inspectors at the accident site revealed that the airplane rested upright on its nose and against trees in a drainage swale on the side of a two-lane road. An odor of fuel was present, but the contents of the fuel tanks could not be established due to the airplane’s position.

Both wings were substantially damaged, but the cockpit, cabin area, empennage, and tail section appeared largely intact. The engine was still attached but displaced from its mounts. The fuel boost pump switch was found in the “on” position. The airplane was photographed and then recovered, first to a local airport, and then to a secure storage facility.

During recovery from the airport, flight control continuity was established from the cockpit to all flight control surfaces. Aileron continuity was established from the control yoke to cuts made during initial recovery, and from the cuts to the ailerons. The engine was retained for additional examination.