Cessna 175B N8199T

Summary

On 23 May 2003 at about 21:10 local time, a Cessna 175B registered N8199T was involved in an accident near Cedar City, Utah, 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

23 May 2003 at 21:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Cedar City, Utah, United States

Coordinates

37.5910, -113.1899

Aircraft

Cessna 175B

Registration

N8199T

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Winnemucca → Cedar City

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN03LA088

1 person had minor injuries.

the pilot's inadvertently switching the fuel selector to the right tank, resulting in fuel starvation, and his failure to maintain direction control during the forced landing. Contributing factors were the crosswind and the tree.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was en route to attend his grandson's graduation. The pilot made an en route stop and the airplane was refueled to capacity. Forty-five minutes after departure, the pilot encountered "light to moderate turbulence with strong updrafts." He moved his flight bag, which had been on the right front seat, and placed it on the cabin floor behind his seat. He did not realize that the bag's shoulder strap had slid between the seats and was wrapped around the fuel selector handle. When he moved the bag, he inadvertently moved the selector handle from BOTH to the RIGHT tank position. With his destination in sight, the pilot initiated a slow descent. Approximately 3 to 4 miles north of the airport, the engine lost power. The pilot attempted to move the fuel selector to another tank, but the shoulder pad was securely wedged under the handle. Unable to extend the glide because of low altitude, he notified the airport of his intentions and made a forced landing on a dirt road. As the airplane came over a slight rise in the road that dropped off abruptly, it became airborne again. A left crosswind caused the airplane to drift off the right side of the road and it struck a cedar tree.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.