Cessna 182H N1843X accident near Paragonah, Utah

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to secure the left tank's fuel cap after refueling the airplane, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

NTSB analysis

The airplane was in cruise flight when its engine lost power. The pilot performed a forced landing to a road, but, during the landing roll, he noticed a vehicle coming toward him. He turned the airplane to the right, off the road, through a fence, and into an adjacent field. A local law enforcement officer examined the airplane immediately after the accident and found both fuel tanks empty. He also noted that the left fuel tank’s cap was missing. Three days after the accident, the pilot found the fuel cap in the run-up area at the departure airport. The pilot stated that he had filled both fuel tanks before beginning the flight and that he either did not replace the fuel cap or left it loose following the refueling. Without the fuel cap in place, airflow over the wing suctioned fuel out of the left wing tank during flight. Because of the interconnection between the two wing fuel tanks, fuel from the right wing tank flowed into the left tank and was also lost overboard, resulting in fuel exhaustion.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR11LA452 for the full record.