C 1 N257B accident near Chico, Texas

Probable cause

A loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the unsnapped fuel bladder, which resulted in an inaccurate fuel quantity indication, and the pilot's inadequate preflight fuel planning, during which he relied solely on the fuel gauges to determine the amount of fuel on board.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that he had flown the airplane about 8 to 10 times after its most recent fueling and that he intended to fly to the destination airport to refuel the airplane. Before departure, the fuel quantity gauge indicated that the fuel tank was about 3/8 full of fuel. About 5 minutes after departure, the engine experienced a loss of power, so the pilot conducted a forced landing in a field, during which the airplane landed hard.

A postaccident examination revealed that the fuel bladder tank was collapsed, and a small amount of unmeasured fuel was observed. The fuel system remained intact, and there was no evidence of a fuel spill at the accident site. The engine operated normally when the fuel trapped in the tank was freed by rocking the wings. It is likely that the small amount of fuel in the fuel tank was unusable during the flight and was insufficient to reach the engine. The pilot stated that the fuel bladder had become unsnapped from the wing, which allowed the fuel quantity transmitter to indicate a false reading. However, the pilot did not conduct adequate preflight fuel planning to ensure there was sufficient fuel on board because he relied solely on the fuel gauges.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN15LA296 for the full record.