What is Your Favorite Icing Story?

[Ben Smullyan]

In 1975 I was flying to Ithaca, New York from Albany, New York. I was
a newly minted Instrument rated pilot, hence, I thought I knew more
than I did. I had never seen real icing. I was 20 miles outside of
Ithaca and started picking up a heavy load of rime ice. Since this was
my first time, as the ice built up, it seemed by the amount of ice I
was accumulating, that my aircraft would fall out of the sky at any
moment. It was a very scary moment as I had no experience to judge how
difficult a situation I really was in. The 172 started to get a bit
mushy. I did get a lower altitude and landed safely but for a first
experience, for a 20 year old, I was happy to get on the ground and
then of course relayed my near death experience to my then girlfriend
to milk it a bit.