Cessna 185 N9867X

Summary

On 5 August 2018 at about 19:30 local time, a Cessna 185 registered N9867X was involved in an accident near Lovelock, Nevada, 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

5 August 2018 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Lovelock, Nevada, United States

Coordinates

40.1678, -118.5333

Aircraft

Cessna 185

Registration

N9867X

Category

Airplane

Year built

1961

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Yellow Pine → Lovelock

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA468

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's improper in-flight fuel planning, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a subsequent total loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, during cruise flight, he descended the airplane due to strong winds and determined that the airplane had about 10.9 gallons of fuel remaining, which he equated to about 1 hour of flight. He added that, about 6 miles from the destination airport, the airplane "ran out of gas" and that the engine lost power. He performed a forced landing on a field, and, during the landing flare, the left main landing gear impacted a berm near the edge of the field. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.