Aero Commander 100 N5573M

Summary

On 4 January 2020 at about 22:00 local time, a Aero Commander 100 registered N5573M was involved in an accident near Mullin, Texas, United States. 2 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

4 January 2020 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Mullin, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Private Airstrip

Coordinates

31.6503, -98.6542

Aircraft

Aero Commander 100

Registration

N5573M

Category

Airplane

Year built

1967

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Abilene → Mullin

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN20LA055

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor and student pilot were conducting a cross-country flight. During a gradual descent to the destination airstrip, the engine lost total power, and the airplane sustained substantial damage during the subsequent forced landing. The airplane was recovered from the accident site and an engine examination and test run revealed no anomalies. Examination of the fuel selector revealed that either the fuel selector handle or the pointer was installed 180° out of position. When the selector handle was selected to BOTH, the valve was completely closed, in what should have been the OFF position. When the selector handle was selected to OFF, the valve was open, in what should have been the BOTH position. The temperature and dewpoint for the accident time and accident site were not conducive to the formation of carburetor icing. It is possible that if the fuel selector was manipulated to the BOTH position during the flight, the fuel may have been prevented from reaching the engine due to the incorrect installation of the selector handle. However, the examination could not determine whether it was the selector handle or the pointer that was installed incorrectly. Based on the available evidence, the reason for the total loss of engine power could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.