Cessna 172I N35326

Summary

On 22 March 1998 at about 22:52 local time, a Cessna 172I registered N35326 was involved in an accident near Kinston, North Carolina, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

22 March 1998 at 22:52

Classification

Accident

Location

Kinston, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Moss Hill (6NC9)

Coordinates

35.2709, -77.5907

Aircraft

Cessna 172I

Registration

N35326

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Kill Devil Hill → Kinston

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA98LA104

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's inadequate preflight and improper fuel management, which resulted in fuel exhaustion, loss of engine power, and a forced landing. Soft terrain in the emergency landing area was a related factor.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

Before departure, the fuel tanks were fueled to the point where the fuel supply automatically shut off due to nozzle-to-fuel contact, but the pilot did not confirm visually that the fuel tanks were filled to the filler neck. The first leg of the flight was uneventful, lasting about 1 hour 24 minutes. During the return flight, as the airplane was approaching the destination airport, the engine lost power. The pilot was able to restart the engine, but it lost power again; this process occurred several times. The pilot made a forced landing in a field about 2-1/2 miles from the airport, and during the landing roll, the airplane encountered soft terrain and nosed over. The pilot stated that at the time of the loss of power, the right fuel tank gauge indicated 1/4 capacity. During both legs of the flight, the mixture control remained in the full rich position. Postaccident examination by an FAA inspector revealed only residual fuel in the fuel tanks. No discrepancies were noted to the fuel indication system. Four gallons of fuel were added to the right fuel tank, which registered just above empty on the fuel gauge. The engine was started, and it operated normally. The performance charts for the airplane were predicated in part on leaning the mixture.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.