Cessna 172 N7499A

Summary

On 22 February 2010 at about 18:20 local time, a Cessna 172 registered N7499A, operated by Joseph H. DuRousseau, Trustee, was involved in an accident near Sparks, Nevada, United States. 4 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

22 February 2010 at 18:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Sparks, Nevada, United States

Coordinates

39.5275, -119.7097

Aircraft

Cessna 172

Registration

N7499A

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Joseph H. DuRousseau, Trustee

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Other Work Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Dyer → Reno

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR10CA144

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the pilot's failure to select the correct fuel selector position.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, he was descending into the landing airport vicinity with the fuel selector on the right tank. The engine then lost power and he switched the fuel selector to the left tank, and then to the "both" position. The propeller continued to windmill and the pilot force-landed the airplane on an interstate. During the landing, the airplane touched down hard and the tailwheel separated from its mounting point and damaged the rudder. The pilot indicated that usually when the airplane is in a descent he positions the fuel selector on the "both" setting. He indicated that in a descent it is important that the selector is positioned to the both position to ensure adequate fuel flow. Additionally, the pilot reported that he may have encountered carburetor icing conditions and he did not immediately apply carburetor heat. According to the Federal Aviation Administration’s carburetor icing chart, icing conditions existed at glide and cruise power. Seven gallons of fuel were found in the airplane's fuel tanks. Following the accident, the engine was started and test run on the airframe using the remaining fuel in the airplane and no anomalies were noted.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.