Summary
On May 20, 2009, a Cessna 172 (N3063U) was involved in an incident near Perryville, MD. All 2 people aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: A total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot’s inadequate preflight planning.
The pilot and owner of the airplane departed on a round trip cross-country flight with one stop. Before departure the owner topped off the fuel tanks and the pilot elected to trust the owner on the accuracy of the fuel amount. No fuel was added or fuel level verified while at the enroute stop. Ten miles from the departure airport, on the return leg, the engine stopped running. The pilot attempted to restart the engine and switched fuel tanks, but the engine would not re-start. The pilot elected to land in an empty field; overran the field boundary, went through a ditch, and impact a tree as it crossed a road before coming to a stop. In the process, the airplane’s nose gear broke off and damaged the leading edge of the right wing.
This incident is documented in NTSB report ERA09CA297. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N3063U.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
A total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot’s inadequate preflight planning.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
The pilot and owner of the airplane departed on a round trip cross-country flight with one stop. Before departure the owner topped off the fuel tanks and the pilot elected to trust the owner on the accuracy of the fuel amount. No fuel was added or fuel level verified while at the enroute stop. Ten miles from the departure airport, on the return leg, the engine stopped running. The pilot attempted to restart the engine and switched fuel tanks, but the engine would not re-start. The pilot elected to land in an empty field; overran the field boundary, went through a ditch, and impact a tree as it crossed a road before coming to a stop. In the process, the airplane’s nose gear broke off and damaged the leading edge of the right wing. The pilot and owner exited the airplane without assistance. The airplane had been flown for a total of 3 hours and 40 minutes in the round trip flight before the engine stopped running due to fuel exhaustion.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# ERA09CA297