Cessna 150 N6584F

Summary

On 14 March 2001 at about 16:20 local time, a Cessna 150 registered N6584F was involved in an accident near Huntington, West Virginia, United States. One person was 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.

Date

14 March 2001 at 16:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Huntington, West Virginia, United States

Coordinates

38.3667, -82.5578

Aircraft

Cessna 150

Registration

N6584F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Ferry

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Huntington → Milton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

IAD01LA037

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection, which resulted in residual fuel contamination and a subsequent engine failure. Factors included corroded fuel filler necks and rain the previous evening.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was 4 months overdue for an annual inspection, and the pilot applied for a ferry permit to fly it to an inspection facility. Two days prior to the accident, a local mechanic examined the airplane, and observed a "significant amount of water" in the fuel samples he drained. He also noted that the fuel filler necks were corroded. The mechanic drained all of the water out of the tanks, and then ran the engine for 30 minutes with no abnormalities. The pilot stated that he performed a thorough preflight inspection prior to his departure, and drained water out of the fuel drains "until the fuel was clear." After departure, about 3 to 4 miles from the airport, the engine lost power and the pilot performed a forced landing to a river. The airplane sank in the river, and was not recovered. According to the pilot and the mechanic, it had rained continuously throughout the night prior to the accident flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.