Fairchild M-62A-3 N103JC

Summary

On 10 September 2011 at about 18:15 local time, a Fairchild M-62A-3 registered N103JC, operated by Commemorative Air Force, was involved in an accident near Waukegan, Illinois, United States. One person was 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

10 September 2011 at 18:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Waukegan, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Waukegan Regional Airport (UGN)

Coordinates

42.4006, -87.8491

Aircraft

Fairchild M-62A-3

Registration

N103JC

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Commemorative Air Force

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Air Race/Show

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Waukegan → Waukegan

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN11LA635

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s inadequate preflight inspection of the airplane, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a total loss of engine power. Contributing to the accident were a malfunctioning fuel gauge and air traffic that prevented an on airport landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Before flight, the pilot checked the airplane’s fuel quantity using the fuel gauges but did not perform a visual inspection of the fuel tanks or top off the fuel tanks. The pilot selected the right fuel tank because its gauge indicated that it was 3/4 full. During the flight, the airplane experienced a total loss of engine power while on the downwind to base leg of the traffic pattern. The pilot turned toward the runway but realized that there was another airplane on short final that precluded his landing on the runway, so he elected to perform an off-airport landing to a field. Examination of the airplane revealed that there was no usable fuel aboard the airplane, the right fuel gauge indicated 3/4 full, and the left fuel gauge indicated empty. Federal Aviation Administration safety guidance information states that fuel gauges are subject to malfunctions and errors, and certification regulations only require that a fuel gauge read “zero” during level flight when the quantity of fuel remaining in the tank is equal to the unuseable fuel supply. Therefore, fuel gauges should not be depended upon for checking the fuel quantity in a tank, and pilots should either top off fuel tanks or perform a visual inspection of fuel tanks to verify fuel quantity.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.