Cessna 172N N4654G

Summary

On 2 November 2000 at about 23:45 local time, a Cessna 172N registered N4654G was involved in an accident near Ridgefield, Connecticut, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 November 2000 at 23:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Ridgefield, Connecticut, United States

Nearest airport

Danbury Municipal (DXR)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Cessna 172N

Registration

N4654G

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

NYC01LA030

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's failure to verify the airplane's fuel tank selector position, which resulted in a loss of engine power.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that shortly before takeoff, she switched the airplane's fuel selector from the "right" position to the "both" position. During the initial climb after takeoff, the airplane's engine experienced momentary roughness followed by a loss of power. The pilot began performing the loss of engine power emergency checklist and verified that both the mixture and throttle controls were in the full forward position; however, she then needed to use both hands to maintain the airplane's glide attitude and was not able to verify the fuel selector position. The airplane struck trees, fell to ground and a post crash fire ensued. The majority of the airplane was consumed in the fire. A complete teardown of the engine did not reveal any pre-impact mechanical failures. Examination of the fuel selector revealed its position was approximately 35-degrees counterclockwise from the "both" tanks position, towards the "left" tank position; which would have resulted in a restricted fuel flow.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.