Cessna 182F N3206U

Summary

On 2 February 2025 at about 22:54 local time, a Cessna 182F registered N3206U was involved in an accident near Anchorage, Alaska, 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

2 February 2025 at 22:54

Classification

Accident

Location

Anchorage, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Merrill Field (MRI)

Coordinates

61.2164, -149.8223

Aircraft

Cessna 182F

Registration

N3206U

Category

Airplane

Year built

1963

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC25LA017

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadequate fuel planning, which resulted in fuel starvation and a total loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

At the conclusion of a flight to break in newly installed cylinders, the pilot returned to the departure airport and entered the traffic pattern. The pilot reported moving the fuel selector valve from Right to Both as he approached the airport. As he entered the downwind leg, he said the airplane began to run rough, and the exhaust gas temperature (EGT) rose, so he applied full carburetor heat. Shortly after turning onto final approach, the engine lost total power and the pilot made a forced landing to a vacant parking lot. After landing, the airplane contacted a curb and the nose gear separated from the airplane, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage and engine mount. The pilot reported that he visually inspected the fuel quantity before takeoff but did not verify the amount of fuel in the wing tanks with the airplane’s dip stick fuel gauge. He stated that the last time the airplane was fueled was six weeks before the accident flight. The total amount of fuel onboard before takeoff could not be confirmed. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel tanks and lines were intact and there was no evidence of fuel leakage. The right wing tank was empty and the left wing tank contained about 6 gallons of fuel. Examination of the engine and fuel system did not reveal evidence of any preimpact failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The recorded engine data indicated that, during the last minute of the flight, the EGT increased slightly and then began to drop, along with the cylinder head temperature (CHT), consistent with fuel starvation and a subsequent total loss of engine power. The pilot stated he did not lean the fuel mixture during the flight, which likely led to a higher-than-calculated fuel burn rate compared to the performance charts for that make and model of airplane. Due to the low fuel state, when the pilot conducted the right turn the fuel tank likely became unported, resulting in a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.