Cessna 150 N71VL

Summary

On 13 October 1997 at about 15:55 local time, a Cessna 150 registered N71VL, operated by Blair C. Peterson, was involved in an accident near Temple Bar, Arizona, 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

13 October 1997 at 15:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Temple Bar, Arizona, United States

Coordinates

36.0206, -114.2908

Aircraft

Cessna 150

Registration

N71VL

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Blair C. Peterson

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

St George → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX98LA016

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's improper planning/decision, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and loss of engine power. A factor relating to the accident was: the terrain condition (ditch) in the emergency landing area.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot departed for a flight after adding approximately 8 gallons of automotive fuel to the aircraft. He said he performed a 'stick test,' and each tank showed approximately 10 gallons of fuel. The pilot stated that while maneuvering, approximately 800 feet above the terrain, the engine suddenly quit, when he banked into a left turn. He said the engine sputtered during the descent, but power was not restored. Also, he told investigator's that the engine acted like it was out of fuel. During a postaccident investigation, only 3 gallons of fuel was found in the fuel system. Additionally, the mixture control was found to have been pulled out about 1 inch from the panel, and the spark plugs were found to have burned very lean. The Cessna Owner's Manual stated there was 1.75 gallons of unusable fuel in each standard tank.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.