Cessna 172F N8578U

Summary

On 1 September 2003 at about 15:30 local time, a Cessna 172F registered N8578U was involved in an accident near Fajardo, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 September 2003 at 15:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Fajardo, United States

Nearest airport

Diego Jimenez Torres (TJFA)

Coordinates

18.3078, -65.6617

Aircraft

Cessna 172F

Registration

N8578U

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Fajardo → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA03LA176

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate aircraft preflight resulting in the airplane being operated with water contamination in the fuel system, and the loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, after taking off, at an altitude of about 300 feet, the airplane's engine lost power. The pilot performed a 180-degree turn back to the runway, but due to the low altitude was unable to reach the runway. He elected to land in a field about 1/2 mile from the runway. The pilot explained it had been close to 3 weeks since the airplane had last been flown. He said he drained large quantities of water from both the left and right wing fuel tank sump ports. He fueled the airplane with a total of about 29 gallons of 100 LL aviation fuel and drained a total of a gallon of fuel from both wing tanks, with "no" indication of water in the fuel. The individual who recovered the airplane from the field stated when up righting the engine, a noticeable amount of water poured out of the carburetor. An Airframe and Power plant mechanic stated to the Federal Aviation Administration inspector that when the carburetor bowl drain plug was removed, only water came out of it, no fuel at all. At the time of the accident no water was utilized at the seen. Weather reports support that there was no rain in the area between the accident and the time the airplane was removed from the farm.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.