Cessna 150H N22358

Summary

On 29 March 1998 at about 00:46 local time, a Cessna 150H registered N22358, operated by Bruce Hatfield, was involved in an accident near West Palm Beach, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 March 1998 at 00:46

Classification

Accident

Location

West Palm Beach, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Palm Beach County Park (LNA)

Coordinates

26.6596, -80.0909

Aircraft

Cessna 150H

Registration

N22358

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Bruce Hatfield

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Clearwater → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

MIA98FA110

2 people were seriously injured.

The poor in-flight planning by the pilot-in-command for his failure to ask for assistance after becoming lost momentarily, and his failure to monitor the total time airborne after the fuel tanks were filled. Contributing to the accident was the binding of the right fuel tank quantity transmitter resulting in the incorrect reading of the gauge, and inadequate aircraft manuals by the airplane manufacturer for failure to require testing of the fuel quantity indicating system for accuracy. Also contributing was the failure of the pilot to obtain a preflight weather briefing, and unsuitable terrain encountered by the pilot during the forced landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The first two legs were uneventful; the fuel tanks were filled after the first flight. During the final leg, he became 'off' course and was taking longer than anticipated due to strong headwinds; no weather briefing was obtained. The pilot did not ask for assistance and corrected for being 'off' course, and while flying near the destination airport, the engine quit. The left and right fuel gauges at that time indicated less then 1/4 and 1/4 respectively. The engine was restarted momentarily but quit again. While flying over a congested highway, he attempted a forced landing in a parking lot and collided with a power line and trees. The entire fuel system was found to contain about 2.0 gallons of fuel; 3.5 gallons of fuel is the unusable amount. The right fuel tank transmitter was sticking in a position that corresponded with 1/4 tank capacity. The airplane was inspected 18.5 hours and 2 months and 13 days earlier using the manufacturers checklist. The checklist requires inspection of the transmitters and fuel gauges for proper operation and correct travel. The airplane had been operated for about 4.5 hours since the fuel tanks were filled after the first leg.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.