Amateur-built SE-FG N246RR accident near Chipley, Florida

Probable cause

The pilot's inadequate in-flight fuel planning, resulting in loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

NTSB analysis

The pilot stated that he began a landing descent for a planned fuel stop. He reported that the left tank was low, while the right tank had more than one-half tank of fuel. At 7,000 feet msl in the descent, the engine lost power and quit. He was unable to glide to an airport, so he prepared for landing on a road. During the landing, he steered the airplane to avoid an oncoming truck. The left wing struck a pole, resulting in substantial damage. Both main wing fuel tanks gravity feed to a five-gallon sump tank, and an FAA inspector was able to drain approximately two gallons of fuel from the sump tank at the accident site; no fuel could be drained from the main tanks. The tank sight gauges indicated zero in the left tank and well below the lowest mark in the right tank. An additional 4.75 gallons of fuel was recovered during disassembly of the airplane for transport. Inspection of the fuel manifold revealed no evidence of fuel. The owner's representative stated that the low-profile wing tanks would have unusable fuel in a nose-low attitude, since the main tank fuel drains are located aft and inboard on the tank.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA09CA011 for the full record.