Cessna 172 N7328F accident near Obyan, CQ

Probable cause

The pilot's inadequate preflight fuel planning and inadequate in-flight fuel monitoring which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion and an emergency landing and subsequent impact with a ditch.

NTSB analysis

According to the operator, about 5 minutes after departure for a local, aerial observation flight, the engine began running roughly and then lost all power. While returning to the airport, the pilot was able to regain engine power momentarily by pumping the throttle control, but shortly after, the engine began to run roughly again, and the power decreased to 1,000 rpm. Subsequently, the pilot declared an emergency, and a tower controller cleared him to land. Due to the opposite direction departing airport traffic, the pilot chose to conduct a straight-in approach instead of a 360° turn to lose altitude. After landing, the airplane bounced several times, and the pilot then deliberately veered it off the runway. Subsequently, the airplane impacted a ditch and nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wings, vertical stabilizer, and rudder.

The pilot reported that he did not visually check the fuel tanks before departure and that he did not recall whether he looked at the fuel quantity indicators before or during the flight. The pilot did not report if he conducted any preflight fuel planning. The operator reported that the fuel logs did not indicate that the airplane had been fueled on the day of the accident.

During examination of the airplane, no fuel was found in the wing tanks or carburetor bowl. A small amount of fuel was found in the gascolator bowl. No stains or other evidence was found at the accident site indicating that fuel had leaked from the airplane. Examination of the engine and airframe revealed no evidence of any preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

Although previous flight times and fuel records were not obtained during the investigation, given that the pilot did not check the fuel quantity before the flight, it is likely that his preflight fuel planning was inadequate because he did not ensure sufficient fuel was onboard for the flight and that he did not adequately monitor the fuel in flight, which led to fuel exhaustion and a subsequent total loss of engine power.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR18LA092 for the full record.