Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
THE PILOT'S DELAY IN OBTAINING ATC ASSISTANCE AFTER BECOMING LOST/DISORIENTED RESULTING IN THE TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER DUE TO FUEL EXHAUSTION. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO NAVIGATE USING THE VOR SYSTEM.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Historical)
Analysis
On November 23, 1994, about 1830 central standard time, a Bellanca 14-13, N74232, registered to Peter P. Kosloski, crashed in a parking lot of a casino near Tunica, Mississippi, while on a 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed. The airplane was substantially damaged and the pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight originated from the Moore-Murrell Airport, Morristown, Tennessee, about 1430.
The pilot stated that he had flown this trip several times and he did not on this flight perform fuel consumption calculations. He also stated that he was navigating using a global positioning system (GPS) unit and about 10 minutes before arrival at his planned destination airport, the batteries in the GPS unit failed. He continued the flight looking for the airport and stated that he delayed obtaining assistance from air traffic control and did not attempt to use the VOR navigation system in his airplane to determine his position. He located a place to perform a forced landing due to fuel exhaustion and after touchdown during the landing roll, the airplane collided with trees then came to rest. The last Biennial Flight Review was accomplished on February 22, 1992.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# MIA95LA028