Mooney M20K N38RK

Summary

On 16 March 2024 at about 20:20 local time, a Mooney M20K registered N38RK was involved in an accident near Farmington, California, 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

16 March 2024 at 20:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Farmington, California, United States

Nearest airport

Field (NONE)

Coordinates

37.8851, -120.9350

Aircraft

Mooney M20K

Registration

N38RK

Category

Airplane

Year built

1986

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Auburn → Oakdale

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR24LA114

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s improper preflight fuel planning that resulted in the 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

The pilot reported that he intended to service the airplane with fuel at the destination airport, which had cheaper fuel and was a short distance away. During the preflight inspection he observed that the low fuel indicator was illuminated for one tank, and the panel gauge for the other indicated it was ¼ full, which he estimated would equate to about 20 about gallons. He cross-checked the levels with the airplanes fuel totalizer system, which indicated 20 gallons of fuel remained. While enroute, the pilot noticed the fuel gauge level dropping faster than he anticipated, and a short time later the engine lost all power due to fuel exhaustion. The pilot performed a forced landing onto a dirt road in farmland, after maneuvering the airplane under a power line. The airplane struck fence on roll-out and sustained substantial damage to both wings. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot reported there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The airplanes low fuel indicators illuminate when about 2 ½ gallons of fuel remain in their respective tanks. Each tank holds about 9 gallons of fuel when ¼ full, rather than the 20 gallons the pilot had estimated. The pilot stated that he had mistakenly used the airplanes total fuel capacity of about 76 gallons when making that calculation, rather than half the value that a single tank could hold. He also stated that he may not have properly adjusted the totalizer the last time he serviced the airplane with fuel, hence its reading was not accurate. He stated that because the totalizer and fuel tank gauge readings were similar, due to confirmation bias he concluded that sufficient fuel remained. The pilot stated that he is risk averse, and conservative in nature and has never departed with the low fuel light on before but, he surmised, the cheaper fuel at the destination likely influenced his decision to proceed with the flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.