Cessna 172G N3700L

Summary

On 21 November 2010 at about 17:15 local time, a Cessna 172G registered N3700L was involved in an accident near Winter Haven, Florida, United States. One person was 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

21 November 2010 at 17:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Winter Haven, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (GIF)

Coordinates

28.0628, -81.7519

Aircraft

Cessna 172G

Registration

N3700L

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Greenville → Winter Haven

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA11CA069

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate preflight/inflight fuel planning resulting in fuel exhaustion and total 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, he reviewed the weather prior to departing on the 416-nautical mile cross-country flight. The pilot fueled the airplane with 30.1 gallons of fuel the morning of the flight. About 3 miles from the destination airport, as the airplane was descending through 1,500 feet mean sea level, the engine sputtered and subsequently experienced a loss of power. During the forced landing, the airplane struck a tree, continued down an incline, and came to rest in a small pond, sustaining substantial damage to the fuselage, both wings, and the firewall. A postaccident examination by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the airplane's left fuel tank contained 2.5 gallons of fuel, the right fuel tank contained 0.5 gallons of fuel; the fuel selector was in the "BOTH" position. A review of the airplane's applicable Owner's Manual revealed that the unusable fuel in level flight was 0.5 gallons. At 67 percent power, and operating with a lean mixture, the airplane's fuel consumption rate was 7.6 gallons per hour. When asked how the accident could have been prevented, the pilot stated that he should have stopped for fuel en route.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.