ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 290054
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| Date: | Wednesday 8 May 2013 |
| Time: | 18:30 LT |
| Type: |  Air Tractor AT-302 |
| Owner/operator: | Airborn Ag Services |
| Registration: | N3650B |
| MSN: | 302-0223 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1979 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 2789 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Winnie, Texas -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Standing |
| Nature: | Executive |
| Departure airport: | Slidell Airport, LA (KASD) |
| Anahuac, TX | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot stated that, on previous flights, he noticed that the cockpit fuel quantity gauge indicated greater fuel consumption from the left fuel tank than the right fuel tank. However, during the accident flight, the fuel quantity gauge indicated greater fuel consumption from the right fuel tank than the left fuel tank. The airplane was not equipped with a fuel tank selector switch. Due to his concern about the fuel quantity imbalance, the pilot decided to land at an alternate airport. However, the engine experienced a total loss of power while the pilot was banking the airplane for landing, so he chose to land the airplane on a rough field. The airplane's left wing struck the ground, and the left main landing gear broke off. Postaccident examination of the airplane found no usable fuel in the right wing fuel tank and about 22.9 gallons of fuel in the left wing fuel tank. No contamination was found within the fuel supply. The airplane manufacturer issued Service Letters Nos. 178 and 178A in 1999 and reissued them in 2002, 2004, and 2009, to advise operators that a fuel imbalance could occur and lead to fuel starvation. A warning placard was never incorporated on AT-302 airplanes, only on later models, and no warning about this issue was added to the AT-302 flight manual.
Probable Cause: The improper decision by the pilot to attempt a flight with a known fuel system-related maintenance discrepancy, which resulted in a fuel imbalance and subsequent fuel starvation during an approach to an alternate airport with a rough field. Contributing to the accident were the manufacturer's failure to incorporate a warning on AT-302 airplanes and to add a warning about this issue in the AT-302 flight manual.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB CEN13LA283
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 06-Oct-2022 07:38 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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