Narrative:

I was flying my own plane on a cross-country flight with two other airplanes and one helicopter. The flight of aircraft was in a loose diamond formation. All the pilots were monitoring and communicating on the air-to-air frequency. I had been flying approximately 2:15 minutes since I filled my tanks. The flight was planned for less than three hours. My plane; when topped off; typically has [a] four hour endurance. The weather conditions were: ceiling about 2000 ft overcast with occasional light rain; visibility 10 miles; wind was less than ten knots out of the north. While in cruise flight at approx 1400 ft MSL (1300 ft AGL) and about 90 mph IAS I detected some minor engine roughness. I suspected it might be carburetor ice so I applied carburetor heat. The engine quit suddenly. I broadcast to the flight that I had an engine failure. I observed a two lane road ahead that appeared to be within gliding distance. The other pilots in the flight (I was number two on the right side of the formation) assisted me by calling out traffic on the road. When I was about 500 ft AGL the other pilots said there was no southbound traffic coming in the opposite direction and there were two cars northbound (the direction I was landing) but they were far enough behind me that I could safely land in front of them. I slipped the plane slightly to get down and slow down and made a landing on the road that was uneventful. My plane coasted to a stop. The pilot of the helicopter in the flight landed in a clearing nearby and came to my assistance. I confirmed that I had plenty of fuel remaining. I inspected the engine and fuel tanks and did not notice any defects. After a short time I climbed in and the plane started normally. I did a run-up and mag check and the engine was performing normally. I was concerned about blocking traffic so with the assistance of the helicopter pilot and some passing motorists who stopped traffic on the highway I took off and landed at the nearest airport about 24 miles away. Shortly after I departed the local police and highway patrol arrived in response to calls about a 'plane down on the highway.' the officers spoke to the helicopter pilot and were upset about my take-off from the highway. Lessons learned: 1) when the engine quit; I concentrated on 'flying' the plane while quickly scanning for a place to make an emergency landing. Since I was flying low to the ground I did not have time to 'troubleshoot' the reason for the engine failure. In the past I had thought about what I would do in the event of an engine failure. I had considered roads as possible landing sites but knew there could be power lines and vehicles. I had already made up my mind that I would not land on a road if it would jeopardize people in vehicles. Off to both sides of the road were pastures where I could have landed if the road was not available; if the other pilots had not advised me that the road was clear I would have. 2) I recall hearing only about half of the other pilot's transmissions. I later learned that the other pilots had advised me to switch tanks; apply carb heat etc. I did not recall hearing those transmissions which I attribute to 'tunnel vision.' 3) this incident definitely pointed out the importance of flying at a higher altitude when possible since it gives you more time; more options and a longer glide. Though I could not have flown much higher due to the ceiling in this case; I will definitely fly [at a] higher AGL in future flights. 4) I became overly concerned about blocking traffic on the road. I should have taken more time to 'calm down' and thoroughly examine the engine to determine the cause of the engine failure before taking off again. I quickly thought it was carb ice but it could have been something else. In either case; before taking off I should have made sure the plane was safe to fly even though I was impacting traffic. I also should have waited for the local police to assist; if and when a takeoff from the road was safe to perform. 5) it definitely helps to regularly think about what you would do if the engine failed now; where you could make an emergency landing. I was very lucky there was a place to land. For the previous hour of flight I was flying over mountainous terrain that was heavily forested. A successful emergency landing then would have been unlikely. Therefore; I will choose my route of flight with more consideration of the terrain. 6.) the police notified the FAA who contacted me by telephone and requested a written report on the circumstances of this event. The FAA asked me to include details on my flight time etc. In the process of getting this information together from my logbook I discovered my bi-annual flight review was due before the trip. I failed to periodically review my logbook to make sure I did not miss the date for completing the flight review. To prevent this from happening again I have posted in my hangar a sign in plain sight reminding me of the date of my next biannual.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: C120 pilot on a cross country flight with two other aircraft and a helicopter experiences engine failure and lands on a country road. When no anomalies can be found; the engine is started and runup before departing to a nearby airport.

Narrative: I was flying my own plane on a cross-country flight with two other airplanes and one helicopter. The flight of aircraft was in a loose diamond formation. All the pilots were monitoring and communicating on the air-to-air frequency. I had been flying approximately 2:15 minutes since I filled my tanks. The flight was planned for less than three hours. My plane; when topped off; typically has [a] four hour endurance. The weather conditions were: ceiling about 2000 FT overcast with occasional light rain; visibility 10 miles; wind was less than ten knots out of the north. While in cruise flight at approx 1400 FT MSL (1300 FT AGL) and about 90 mph IAS I detected some minor engine roughness. I suspected it might be carburetor ice so I applied carburetor heat. The engine quit suddenly. I broadcast to the flight that I had an engine failure. I observed a two lane road ahead that appeared to be within gliding distance. The other pilots in the flight (I was number two on the right side of the formation) assisted me by calling out traffic on the road. When I was about 500 FT AGL the other pilots said there was no southbound traffic coming in the opposite direction and there were two cars northbound (the direction I was landing) but they were far enough behind me that I could safely land in front of them. I slipped the plane slightly to get down and slow down and made a landing on the road that was uneventful. My plane coasted to a stop. The pilot of the helicopter in the flight landed in a clearing nearby and came to my assistance. I confirmed that I had plenty of fuel remaining. I inspected the engine and fuel tanks and did not notice any defects. After a short time I climbed in and the plane started normally. I did a run-up and mag check and the engine was performing normally. I was concerned about blocking traffic so with the assistance of the helicopter pilot and some passing motorists who stopped traffic on the highway I took off and landed at the nearest airport about 24 miles away. Shortly after I departed the local police and highway patrol arrived in response to calls about a 'plane down on the highway.' The officers spoke to the helicopter pilot and were upset about my take-off from the highway. Lessons learned: 1) when the engine quit; I concentrated on 'flying' the plane while quickly scanning for a place to make an emergency landing. Since I was flying low to the ground I did not have time to 'troubleshoot' the reason for the engine failure. In the past I had thought about what I would do in the event of an engine failure. I had considered roads as possible landing sites but knew there could be power lines and vehicles. I had already made up my mind that I would not land on a road if it would jeopardize people in vehicles. Off to both sides of the road were pastures where I could have landed if the road was not available; If the other pilots had not advised me that the road was clear I would have. 2) I recall hearing only about half of the other pilot's transmissions. I later learned that the other pilots had advised me to switch tanks; apply carb heat etc. I did not recall hearing those transmissions which I attribute to 'tunnel vision.' 3) This incident definitely pointed out the importance of flying at a higher altitude when possible since it gives you more time; more options and a longer glide. Though I could not have flown much higher due to the ceiling in this case; I will definitely fly [at a] higher AGL in future flights. 4) I became overly concerned about blocking traffic on the road. I should have taken more time to 'calm down' and thoroughly examine the engine to determine the cause of the engine failure before taking off again. I quickly thought it was carb ice but it could have been something else. In either case; before taking off I should have made sure the plane was safe to fly even though I was impacting traffic. I also should have waited for the local police to assist; if and when a takeoff from the road was safe to perform. 5) It definitely helps to regularly think about what you would do if the engine failed now; where you could make an emergency landing. I was very lucky there was a place to land. For the previous hour of flight I was flying over mountainous terrain that was heavily forested. A successful emergency landing then would have been unlikely. Therefore; I will choose my route of flight with more consideration of the terrain. 6.) The police notified the FAA who contacted me by telephone and requested a written report on the circumstances of this event. The FAA asked me to include details on my flight time etc. In the process of getting this information together from my logbook I discovered my bi-annual flight review was due before the trip. I failed to periodically review my logbook to make sure I did not miss the date for completing the flight review. To prevent this from happening again I have posted in my hangar a sign in plain sight reminding me of the date of my next biannual.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.