Cessna T210M N761SE

Summary

On 3 February 2001 at about 14:50 local time, a Cessna T210M registered N761SE was involved in an accident near Kelseyville, California, United States. 3 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

3 February 2001 at 14:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Kelseyville, California, United States

Coordinates

38.9105, -122.7890

Aircraft

Cessna T210M

Registration

N761SE

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Healdsburg → Willows

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dawn

NTSB number

LAX01LA085

Nobody was injured.

The failure of the pilot to comply with emergency procedures contained in the Pilot's Operating Handbook, which resulted in an excessively rich mixture and 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, during his preflight inspection of the aircraft, he noted the fuel gauges indicated about 25 gallons total fuel in the tanks, and, while looking in each of the two tanks and rocking the aircraft, he could hear sloshing and saw an irregular reflection. After takeoff, while climbing out at 120 - 130 knots and climbing 500 feet per minute, the airplane was near 4,000 feet msl when he felt the controls of the airplane get heavy. He had a headset on and couldn't hear the engine well. When he checked the instruments he saw that the engine tachometer was down to 1,200 rpm and the airspeed was slowing to below 100 knots. There was no roughness, no loud noise, and no sputtering from the engine. The engine continued to windmill. The airplane was on the right-hand fuel tank and he switched to the left tank. The throttle, propeller, and mixture controls were in the full forward position. He believed that he only turned on the low fuel boost pump switch position because he focused his attention outside the airplane on selecting a site and landing. The aircraft recovery company reported that, when they recovered the airplane, there was no fuel in the right tank and about 8 gallons fuel in the left tank (0.5 gallons of fuel in each tank is unusable). A postaccident examination of the aircraft did not reveal any mechanical abnormality. According to the Cessna Aircraft Company Pilot Operating Handbook for the model T210M (Emergency Procedures, Engine Failure During Flight), following loss of engine power, the pilot should; 1) switch to the fuller fuel tank, 2) place the mixture control in the full rich position, 3) turn the auxiliary fuel pump on for 3 - 5 seconds with the throttle 1/2 open, and 4) slowly advance the throttle. A Cessna Aircraft spokesman said that, if the throttle and mixture were full forward (full throttle and rich mixture) and the boost pump remained on while the engine was rotating at only 1,200 rpm, a flooded fuel condition was likely created in the engine which prevented restart.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.