Embraer EMB-110P1 N116WA

Summary

On 21 May 2014 at about 11:33 local time, a Embraer EMB-110P1 registered N116WA, operated by Wiggins Airways Inc, was involved in an incident near Warren, Vermont, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

21 May 2014 at 11:33

Classification

Incident

Location

Warren, Vermont, United States

Nearest airport

Warren-Sugarbush (0B7)

Coordinates

44.1175, -72.8269

Aircraft

Embraer EMB-110P1

Registration

N116WA

Category

Airplane

Year built

1982

Engines

2

Operator

Wiggins Airways Inc

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Manchester → Burlington

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA14IA249

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the pilot, 1,000 lbs of fuel was to be added to each fuel tank the night before the incident flight. The next morning, he conducted a preflight inspection and reported seeing 1,000 lbs per side and then departed the home base airport on the cargo flight. The pilot reported that, while in cruise flight, the fuel low-pressure light illuminated, followed shortly thereafter by the right engine and then the left engine shutting down. The pilot subsequently diverted the flight to a nearby airport. Upon touchdown, the pilot used "aggressive braking." The left tire subsequently deflated, the airplane veered left, the left main landing gear departed the paved portion of the runway, and then the right tire deflated. Following the incident, maintenance personnel conducted a fuel quantity gauge accuracy test, and no abnormalities or malfunctions were noted that would have precluded normal operation. Postincident examination of the fuel system revealed that the fuel tanks were devoid of fuel. The fuel caps were found secure and in place, and no evidence of any preaccident mechanical malfunction or failure was found. There was no evidence of any fuel staining or leakage. A review of the airplane's fueling records revealed that it was last refueled over a week before the incident; it was not fueled the night before the incident as requested by the pilot. During that week, the airplane was flown about 1.9 flight hours; 1,100 lbs of fuel remained after that flight. Maintenance personnel subsequently conducted multiple engine performance runs and two taxi repositions, which consumed about 600 lbs of fuel, leaving about 500 lbs of fuel, which was also reported by a maintenance technician after the most recent test run before the flight. Given the lack of any preexisting mechanical anomalies and that no fuel was recovered from the airplane, it is likely that the engine lost power due to fuel exhaustion because of the pilot's inadequate preflight inspection.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.