Meyers Industries Inc 200C N189M accident near Justin, Texas

Probable cause

A total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the pilot's improper fuel management.

NTSB analysis

The pilot departed with full fuel tanks on a long cross-country flight. As the pilot approached his destination airport, he initiated a rapid descent by reducing the throttle to idle and lowering the nose of the airplane. At some point, the engine stopped producing power, but the pilot didn't realize this until he was on approach to the airport because the propeller was windmilling and he was wearing a noise-cancelling headset. The pilot was unable to restart the engine or maintain altitude. As the airplane glided toward the airport, the pilot realized that the gear warning horn had not activated when he pulled the throttle to idle and had to quickly extend the landing gear manually. The pilot was unable to fully extend the gear and landed short of the runway in a pasture. The nosewheel struck a hole and separated from the airframe and the left main gear collapsed, resulting in substantial damage to the airframe. The airplane came to rest upright with the left wing tip on the ground. The propeller, left wing tip, and the leading edge of the left wing were also damaged; however, the four wing fuel tanks were not breached. The right outboard fuel tank was found empty, the right inboard fuel tank was 3/4 full, the left inboard tank was full, and the left outboard tank was 3/4 full. The fuel selector was found set to the right outboard tank position. The pilot stated that the fuel selector was set to the left inboard tank (which he estimated had 15 minutes of fuel remaining) when the engine quit and he had switched to a full tank to try and restart the engine. He said that even though the outboard fuel tanks looked empty after the accident he still had about 1.5 hours of fuel remaining and that he did not run any of the tanks out of fuel. A postaccident examination of the fuel system, ignition, and throttle assemblies revealed no mechanical deficiencies.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN10LA489 for the full record.