Fuel exhaustion Accident Super Acro Sport I N20FB,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 224342
 
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Date:Thursday 25 April 2019
Time:12:58 LT
Type:Super Acro Sport I
Owner/operator:Frank Beaman Aircraft Services LLC
Registration: N20FB
MSN: P S AIRCRAFT 1
Year of manufacture:1992
Total airframe hrs:1196 hours
Engine model:Lycoming O-320-A2B
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Category:Accident
Location:Elbert County, near Elberton, GA -   United States of America
Phase: En route
Nature:Private
Departure airport:Saluda, SC (6J4)
Destination airport:Carnesville, GA (3GE3)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The pilot had just purchased the airplane and the accident flight was his first in it. Before the flight, the previous owner explained to the pilot that the main fuel tank was full of fuel and that the auxiliary tank contained no fuel. The pilot acknowledged the fuel state of the airplane and told the seller he "would not need" auxiliary fuel. Following an aborted takeoff attempt, the pilot departed for his home airport. The pilot advised first responders that during the flight, his 'fuel quit working so he tried to prime it for his backup fuel to work.' When that did not remedy the problem, he prepared the airplane for a forced landing and subsequently impacted trees. The airplane was substantially damaged during the forced landing and the pilot was seriously injured.
A Federal Aviation Administration inspector who examined the airplane at the accident site found that only a 'very small amount' of fuel remained in the main fuel tank after the accident. The estimated fuel endurance of the airplane based on the fuel reported to be onboard at the time the pilot departed, and the estimated fuel consumption reported by the previous owner, was about 2.1 hours. The time elapsed between when the airplane departed and the accident was about 2.3 hours. Given this information, it is likely that the pilot exhausted the airplane's available fuel supply, resulting in a total loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing.

Probable Cause: The pilot's inadequate fuel planning, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: ERA19LA158
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 3 years 1 month
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB ERA19LA158
FAA register: https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=20FB

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
25-Apr-2019 23:51 Geno Added
26-Apr-2019 16:36 Geno Updated [Registration, Cn, Operator, Source, Narrative]
26-Apr-2019 16:37 Geno Updated [Narrative]
02-Jul-2022 09:14 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Accident report]

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