Cessna 180 N7945V accident near Manchester, California

Probable cause

The pilot’s improper preflight fuel planning, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and the total loss of engine power.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that, during cruise flight, the engine "quit" while at 1,500 ft above ground level. He added that he landed the airplane in a large, flat pasture, but during the landing, the airplane nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the tail and wings.

In a telephone conversation with the recovery specialist, the pilot reported that the fuel tanks had not been breached during the landing, and he recovered 1.5 gallons of fuel from the right fuel tank and 2.5 gallons of fuel from the left fuel tank.

The airplane was equipped with an engine monitoring unit. About 1 hour 13 minutes of data were recorded during the accident flight. The data showed a sudden decrease in exhaust gas temperatures and cylinder head temperatures for all cylinders about the same time. For further information, see the JPI Engine Monitoring Unit data plot in the public docket for this accident.

The 1967 Cessna 180 Owner's Manual states, in part:

"2.5 gallons [in] each tank [is] unusable in normal flight maneuvers."

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA17CA230 for the full record.