Cessna 421 N4050L

Summary

On 20 March 1997 at about 05:33 local time, a Cessna 421 registered N4050L was involved in an accident near League City, Texas, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

20 March 1997 at 05:33

Classification

Accident

Location

League City, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Houston Gulf (SPX)

Coordinates

29.4807, -95.1004

Aircraft

Cessna 421

Registration

N4050L

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Diego → Galveston

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

FTW97FA130

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to refuel the airplane which resulted in the loss of power to the right engine due to fuel exhaustion, and the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during the single engine landing approach which resulted in a stall/spin.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The twin engine airplane had been cleared for a night instrument approach to Galveston, Texas, after flying non-stop from San Diego, California, when the pilot reported that he had lost the right engine and did not have much fuel left. The controller vectored the airplane toward the closest airport, and the airplane was approximately 1 mile northeast of that airport when radar contact was lost. A witness observed the airplane enter a spin, descend in a nose down attitude, and impact near the center of a lake. When the pilot filed his flight plan for the cross country flight, he indicated the airplane carried enough fuel to fly for 7 hours and 30 minutes. At the time radar contact was lost, 7 hours and 32 minutes had elapsed since the airplane departed San Diego. Examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of any pre-impact mechanical discrepancies. The landing gear was down, the flaps were extended to about 15 degrees, and neither propeller was feathered. The single engine approach procedure in the airplane owner's manual indicated that the landing gear should be extended when within gliding distance of the field and the flaps placed down only after landing is assured.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.