Cessna 414A N414AY

Summary

On 26 November 2006 at about 23:00 local time, a Cessna 414A registered N414AY, operated by Shawn Mullins, was involved in an accident near Las Vegas, Nevada, 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.

Date

26 November 2006 at 23:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

North Las Vegas Airport (VGT)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Cessna 414A

Registration

N414AY

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Shawn Mullins

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Luis Obispo → Las Vegas

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX07LA048

1 person had minor injuries.

A loss of power in the right engine due to fuel starvation. The fuel starvation was the result of the pilot's improper fuel selector position setting.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane's right engine experienced a loss of power and the airplane collided with a fence during a precautionary landing about 2 miles from the destination airport. Near the conclusion of a cross-country flight, the pilot configured the airplane for landing and continued onto final approach of the traffic pattern at the destination airport. With the airplane between 300 to 500 feet above ground level (agl), the right engine experienced a loss of power. The pilot noted that the airplane was not able to sustain level flight and opted to perform a precautionary landing on a residential street. The left wing collided with a fence and erupted in flames. During recovery of the wreckage, about 1 gallon of fuel was found in the right fuel tank, which remained intact. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector examined the wreckage following the accident. He noted no mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded the airplane from operating normally. He did observe both fuel selector valves to be positioned on the right fuel tank. The pilot fueled the airplane at the departure airport with the addition of 70 gallons of 100LL aviation fuel, which he stated gave a cumulative 115 gallons on board (57.5 gallons per tank). The airplane's Pilot Operator's Handbook (POH) states that during normal flight operations the left and right fuel selectors are to be positioned to the "LEFT MAIN" and "RIGHT MAIN" tanks, respectively. When both selectors are positioned to the same tank, fuel from that tank will supply both engines. At the airplane's estimated fuel burn rate of 38 gallons per hour and the accident flight's time en route of 1.5 hours, the total fuel burn for both engines would be 57 gallons. The POH further indicates that with one engine inoperative, the airplane should have been able to obtain at least a 500-foot-per-minute climb.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.