Cessna 150H N6970S

Summary

On 30 June 2006 at about 03:00 local time, a Cessna 150H registered N6970S was involved in an accident near Smyrna, Delaware, 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

30 June 2006 at 03:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Smyrna, Delaware, United States

Coordinates

39.3333, -75.5833

Aircraft

Cessna 150H

Registration

N6970S

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Monticello → Stevensville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

NYC06LA163

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot's misjudged fuel calculations, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and subsequent loss of engine power. A factor was the nighttime lighting conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot refueled the airplane prior to a flight to pick up his daughter. At the intermediate stop, the pilot did not refuel the airplane, but did show his daughter how much fuel was onboard and how much fuel was needed for the return trip. During that trip, while in cruise flight, the engine lost power, and the pilot attempted a nighttime forced landing to a field, but the airplane hit trees instead. Subsequent examinations of the airplane revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical anomaly or fuel leak. The pilot's daughter indicated to local authorities that the airplane had been low on fuel, and at the scene, about 1.5 gallons were found onboard. The owner's manual stated that 3.5 gallons of fuel were unusable. There were a number of airports along the approximate route of flight where the pilot could have purchased fuel.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.