During a cross-country flight, the Cessna 182’s engine sputtered twice. The pilot performed an uneventful precautionary landing, in a field near Littleton, N.C., about 20 miles away from his intended destination.
He then secured ground transportation and obtained more fuel for the airplane.
During the subsequent takeoff from the “L-shaped” field, the plane drifted right and hit a culvert on the right boundary of the field.
The pilot continued the takeoff and landed at his intended destination.
Examination of the airplane by an FAA inspector revealed damage to the nosegear, lower fuselage, and firewall.
The NTSB determined the probable cause as the pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during takeoff.
NTSB Identification: ERA14CA082
This December 2013 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
Well, we don’t know if he would have run out of fuel had he continued on which makes the landing precautionary.
He tried to do the right thing after doing the wrong thing.
A sad story ,none the less.
Overall a better outcome than running out of fuel and smashing into an apartment building or a school.
I would have called it failure in preflight planning, for allowing it to run low on fuel in the first place.