The pilot reported that, en route, he noticed a drop in the engine’s rpm. He noted that the fuel shutoff valve was open, and the gas gauges showed half full in the right tank and quarter full in the left tank.
He added that the carburetor heat was off, the mixture was full rich, and then the engine quit running.
During the third attempt to restart the engine, it briefly started and then quit again. Subsequently, during an off-airport landing in a field near El Dorado, Kansas, the Cessna 150 nosed over.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the empennage and fuselage.
The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
He added that he had filled the gas “to the top” (22.5 gallons) before departure and had flown for 3.7 hours. The 1969 Cessna 150 owner’s manual states that the airplane’s maximum range was 4.1 hours with no reserve at 75% power at 7,000′.
In a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, the pilot said he did not consult the emergency checklist because it was placed in the glovebox.
FAA inspectors drained the fuel tanks about five days after the accident and reported that there was no evidence of fuel leakage around the fuel caps or on the ground. They drained about 8 to 12 ounces from the left wing tank and about 3/4 of a gallon from the right wing tank.
The FAA inspectors added that the engine showed proper continuity, and the magnetos were operational.
The engine was not run due to a fractured intake manifold just above the carburetor base flange. The fracture damage to the intake manifold was consistent with impact damage.
Probable cause: The pilot’s improper fuel planning, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion and a subsequent off-airport landing and nose-over.
NTSB Identification: GAA18CA124
This February 2018 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.
My bladder usually needs emptying long before the airplanes fuel tanks are too low. Besides, I enjoy flying to different airport’s along my route. Good practice and familiarization for an actual diversion from flight plans scenario.
My friend and chief flight instructor told me the story of when he was the PIC of a friends twin engine aircraft. He was with the friend when they were taxiing out when he asked the owner how long they could fly with both tanks full. The owner replied that he didn’t know. Nothing was said about that subject after that. Somewhere between here and there the right engine quit much to the surprise of the owner. My friend pointed to the fuel selector which was set on one tank. He then said “now we know”.
A responsible pilot should always know how much fuel he has to start a flight and how much fuel that airplane will burn per flight hour given his mixture and rpm settings. With that he should know how long he can stay aloft. Duhhh!
These fuel gauges are unreliable and every pilot should know it. These 150s have been around long enough.
The problems are unreliable electrical fuel gauges and a connection between the tanks. If you top off both tanks and park the aircraft overnight and the ground is not absolutely level, you may have lost a considerable amount of fuel by the time you are back through the tank vent. A little higher rpm, not leaned properly might do the rest.
I have an early C-140 in which I’ve flown nearly 6 hrs at approximately 65% power. With two independent tanks (no connection between them) and mechanical fuel gauges you can always leave enough reserve in one tank to keep you out of trouble.
I‘d never do that in a C-150. In doubt it is still the best option to land at the nearest airport – regardless what the gauges show.
My CFI had a vey good saying that instantly resonated with me as strongly then as now, “ When you start drawing off the bottom half of your fuel capacity, it is time to start getting paranoid “.
That’s the positive way of describing the scenario.
I’ll skip my other story for now. The good news is this pilot lived to tell, unlike the pilot of my other story.
So then it’s important to know when you’ve used 1/2 of the fuel ! If we can’t rely on the gauges , [ which this pilot did and ran out of fuel ], then the only reliable method is to know how long the aircraft can fly at the power settings used.
My old Cessna has a wind up clock. After engine start, I set the clock to 12 noon. Then a glance at it will indicate how long I’ve been flying. By the time that it shows 3pm I’m usually on the ground and refueling.
BTW, none of my flight training included calculating the actual fuel use at the power settings we used.
I did this myself to check the POH data. It was close for the C172R I was renting at the time.
What if your old wind-up clock stops working at some point while you are flying? Do you have a back-up timer?
Consider in any GA aircraft…construction and design of the fuel cap, the fuel tank, the fuel line, the fuel selector valve, the fuel pump (if the aircraft has one) the firewall forward fuel delivery system…..then ask yourself how do I fly the fuel system…what do I really know or understand about it…if you are a subject matter expert on your fuel then you will make excellent regarding fuel decisions
The pilot lied.
C150’s with the AD required one – piece venturi instead of the original 2 piece venturi have a higher fuel flow. With a low time engine and JPI700 engine monitor with RPM, EGT, CHT and a Fuel Flow meter accurate to .2 gallons over 5 hours (LR tanks) the minimum fuel flow I’ve consistently found is over 1.5 to 2.5 gallons more than the POH. There goes your reserve in flight even if you lean it out….
This pilot had 95 hrs in the aircraft and still didn’t determine the maximum number of hours the aircraft could fly, which is about 4 hours, and that requires leaning, 70% power and zero wind !
There was a 15-20 headwind on the return which will add 20% to the flight time.
Pilots need to understand that an aircraft will fly for a certain number of hours, so start a timer on engine start and land somewhere when your TIME is up, maybe 3 hours in this aircraft.
So, more stupid pilot tricks, apparently relying on the fuel gauges, resulting in a damaged rented aircraft. I hope that this guy had renters insurance.
Also, the fuel gauges appear to have not been properly calibrated, to show ‘E’ when there is no usable fuel.
Wind has no effect on endurance, only on range.