Mooney M20J N201EU accident near Coalinga, California

Probable cause

A partial loss of engine power due to the pilot's improper in-flight fuel management, which resulted in fuel starvation.

NTSB analysis

The commercial pilot was conducting a local flight when the engine experienced a partial loss of power. The pilot stated that he switched the fuel selector from the right to the left tank, applied full throttle, set the mixture control to full rich, and extended the wing flaps. The engine seemed to continue running during the forced landing. The airplane impacted a stand of almond trees and came to rest in a nose-down attitude about 1 1/2 miles from the destination.

The pilot reported no mechanical anomalies with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation and stated that there was enough fuel to get to the destination, "but not all in the tank that was being drawn from."

A postaccident examination revealed that the right wing tank, which was undamaged, was void of any usable fuel; about 4 ounces of fuel was drained from the tank. Also, there was no evidence of a fuel leak from either wing tank. The fuel selector was observed positioned to draw fuel from the left tank, which contained about 7 gallons of fuel. Further examination revealed that the fuel control unit's inlet finger strainer was clean and free of obstructions. Additionally, the fuel supply line contained a small amount of clean, blue-colored fuel when disconnected. No water or particulate contaminates were detected in the fuel system.

A postaccident engine run revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The partial loss of engine power was likely due to the pilot's improper in-flight fuel management, which resulted in fuel starvation to the engine after all of the usable fuel in the right wing tank had been consumed.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR17LA011 for the full record.