Pilot Debrief

CESSNA 172F near Williamsport, IN — 2018-01-27

Final reportCEN18FA088
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Date
2018-01-27
Location
Williamsport, IN, USA
Aircraft
CESSNA 172F
Registration
N8559U
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
Fatal
Fatalities
1
Phase of flight
Cruise

Probable cause

The pilot's mismanagement of fuel, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and descent and collision with trees.

NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was ferrying the newly-purchased airplane cross-country for the new owner. The first leg of the trip was completed without incident. After refueling the airplane, the pilot departed and proceeded toward the destination in night visual meteorological conditions. After about 3 hours, 51 minutes of flight, the airplane descended and impacted trees and terrain about 9 miles short of the destination. Examination of the wreckage revealed evidence of fuel exhaustion; both main fuel tanks were intact, no fuel was observed inside the tanks, and no fuel smell was noticed at the site. The lack of damage to the propeller blades was consistent with the engine not developing power at impact. According to the manufacturer's performance chart, with full main tanks, the airplane had an endurance of about 3.7 hours. Therefore, it is likely that the engine lost power as a result of fuel exhaustion. Although toxicology testing was positive for opioids, the relative amounts of these opioids detected in urine suggest that the source may have been the ingestion of poppy seeds rather than pharmaceuticals.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Fuel management
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have checked fuel levels before departure from LCK.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • ADS-B / radar
  • Photos
  • 8 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents8

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