Cessna 172M N496HM

Summary

On 31 May 2002 at about 18:30 local time, a Cessna 172M registered N496HM, operated by Clarence A. Miller, was involved in an accident near Anacortes, Washington, United States. One person was on board and 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

31 May 2002 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Anacortes, Washington, United States

Coordinates

48.4595, -122.5997

Aircraft

Cessna 172M

Registration

N496HM

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Clarence A. Miller

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Undetermined → Anacortes

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA02LA093

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's improper decision to continue his flight after failing to take on fuel at a planned en route refueling stop, which lead to a loss of power from fuel exhaustion while on final approach to his round-robin final destination. Factors include inaccurate fuel quantity gauges, no suitable terrain on which to execute the forced landing, and soft terrain where the pilot ultimately decided to put the aircraft down.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After reaching his initial destination on a round-robin cross-country flight, the pilot discovered that the runway was closed for repair, so he flew back along his outbound route looking for a place to refuel. He landed at an agricultural airstrip, but determined that there was no fuel available there. After departing the agricultural airstrip, he decided to land at a municipal airport in a nearby town, but was unable to locate the runway. He then made the decision to return to his initial departure point without stopping to take on fuel. While on final approach to the initial departure point, the aircraft ran out of fuel, and the pilot was forced to land on a nearby gravel beach. Although the touchdown was uneventful, during the landing roll, the aircraft nosed over on the soft terrain. According to the pilot, he did not keep an accurate tally of his fuel burn and total time airborne, and in considering his fuel situation while en route, he forgot to take into account a one hour and 40 minute flight on the previous day. It was also determined that the fuel quantity gauges did not accurately reflect the total amount of fuel onboard the aircraft while airborne.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.