Cessna 170B N2294D
5 April 1997 · Furnace Creek, California, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 5 April 1997 at about 22:31 local time, a Cessna 170B registered N2294D was involved in an accident near Furnace Creek, California, United States. 2 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 22:31
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Furnace Creek, California, United States
- Coordinates
- 36.5998, -116.8293
- Aircraft
- Cessna 170B
- Registration
- N2294D
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Unknown → Bishop
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX97LA146
People
1 person had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Probable cause
Fuel starvation resulting from disconnection of the fuel selector valve. Factors which contributed to the accident were the pilot's intentional operation with known airplane deficiencies and the rough terrain.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot departed with the fuel selector set to the 'both' tanks position. However, during the flight fuel appeared to have been mostly used from the right tank. To equalize the burn off, he repositioned the fuel selector to the left tank only position. Fuel continued to be consumed out of the right tank, and the engine quit when the right fuel tank gauge registered empty and the left tank gauge registered 3/4 full. The pilot made a forced landing on a road. Thereafter, the pilot examined his airplane and noted that the fuel selector handle was 'real loose.' The pilot manually siphoned between 12 and 15 gallons of fuel out of the left tank, poured it into the right tank, and took off. Several seconds into the initial climb, between 100 and 150 feet above ground level, all engine power was lost again. Unable to return to the road, the pilot made a forced landing on rough terrain. The fuel tank selector assembly was examined and its control shaft was found disconnected at its attachment to the fuel valve assembly.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Cessna 170 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Jul 1997 | Cessna 170B | Karlin, Michigan, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 12 Oct 1997 | Cessna 170A | Quincy, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 24 Oct 1997 | Cessna 170B | Fernley, Nevada, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 29 Sep 1997 | Cessna 170 | Troy, North Carolina, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 30 Sep 1997 | Cessna 170A | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 26 Jan 1997 | Cessna 170B | Toledo, Washington, United States | General Aviation, Inc. | No injuries | - |
All 1,985 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Aug 1997 | Airbus A300 B4-203 | Los Angeles, California, United States | Pan American World Airways, In | No injuries | - |
| 15 Aug 1997 | Bell UH-1H | Tahoe City, California, United States | Usda / Forest Service | Minor injuries | - |
| 11 Oct 1997 | Cessna 152 | Julian, California, United States | Plus One Flyers, Inc. | Fatal | 1 |
| 11 Oct 1997 | Schweizer 2-32 | Warner Springs, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 12 Oct 1997 | Bellanca 7ECA | Tracy, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 26 Oct 1997 | Extra Flugzeugbau EA-300 | Castaic, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |