Cessna 172N N738CW

Summary

On 15 October 2000 at about 01:02 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N738CW, operated by William D. Hatcher, was involved in an accident near Jensen, Utah, United States. 3 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

15 October 2000 at 01:02

Classification

Accident

Location

Jensen, Utah, United States

Coordinates

40.4691, -109.2609

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N738CW

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

William D. Hatcher

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN01LA004

1 person was seriously injured.

an undershoot due to misjudging distance/altitude during an emergency landing. Factors were: inadequate preflight, failure to refuel, fuel exhaustion, operating with an inoperative fuel gauge, and failure to attain a proper glide path during approach.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While on a round robin cross-country flight, the engine lost all power and the pilot attempted to make an emergency landing on a 1,800 foot long private airstrip. The approach was high and fast and the pilot attempted to turn the aircraft around and land in the opposite direction. He ended up landing hard, on rough terrain, about 200 feet short of the runway. Examination of the aircraft following the accident revealed the only fuel remaining was unusable fuel in each tank. The pilot said he did not physically check the fuel quantity prior to departure and that one of the two fuel gauges was inoperative.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.