Pilot Debrief

BEECH B24R near Skull Valley, UT — 2025-02-10

Final reportWPR25FA090
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Date
2025-02-10
Location
Skull Valley, UT, USA
Aircraft
BEECH B24R
Registration
N9324S
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

The flight instructor’s improper fuel management, which resulted in fuel starvation and a total loss of engine power. Contributing to the accident were multiple distractions that diverted the flight instructor’s attention from the proper monitoring and management of the fuel load.

Contributing factors

Contributing to the accident were multiple distractions that diverted the flight instructor’s attention from the proper monitoring and management of the fuel load.

NTSB narrative

The flight instructor and student pilot departed the airport for the student pilot’s first flight lesson, which was also the flight instructor’s first flight in the accident airplane make and model. The flight instructor stated that the airplane was fully fueled, and the fuel selector valve was initially set in the right tank position. After about 1 hour 44 minutes, the airplane’s engine lost all power. During the approximate 4-minute descent, the flight instructor’s efforts to restart the engine were unsuccessful, and he executed a forced landing at an off-airport site. During the landing rollout, the airplane impacted vegetation and terrain, sustaining substantial damage to the fuselage and empennage. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the right fuel tank had been exhausted of all usable fuel, while the left fuel tank was nearly full of fuel. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. A test run of the engine after the accident revealed normal operations from idle to full speed. Although the flight instructor reported that he repositioned the fuel selector valve handle multiple times during the flight, the fuel evidence in the wreckage was consistent with the right fuel tank having been selected for most or all the flight. Given that the flight instructor was unfamiliar with the airplane make and model and encountered a communications anomaly and the student pilot’s motion sickness during the flight, it is likely that he was distracted by these multiple events such that he failed to adequately monitor the fuel tank quantities. This allowed for the consumption of all usable fuel in the right-wing tank and resulted in the loss of engine power.

NTSB coding

View NTSB final report

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