Cessna 172E N5788T

Summary

On 5 September 2004 at about 23:28 local time, a Cessna 172E registered N5788T, operated by Robert F. Losey, was involved in an accident near Port Angeles, Washington, United States. 2 people were 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

5 September 2004 at 23:28

Classification

Accident

Location

Port Angeles, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

William R. Fairchild Intl (CLM)

Coordinates

48.1222, -123.6267

Aircraft

Cessna 172E

Registration

N5788T

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Robert F. Losey

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Silverdale → Port Angeles

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA04LA182

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's inadequate inflight decision by failing to refuel while en route, resulting in fuel exhaustion and the loss of power. Factors contributing to the accident included the fence and the ditch.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he finger inspected both fuel tanks prior to takeoff. The pilot-rated observer noticed that while taxiing for takeoff the left fuel gauge read somewhere near 1/2, while the right gauge read near full. Approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes into the flight the pilot and pilot-rated observer became concerned with the aircraft's fuel state and elected to proceed to a nearby airport to refuel. Approximately 15 minutes later the right fuel tank ran dry and the engine quit. After switching to the left tank the pilot was successful in restarting the engine. Approximately 5 minutes later the left fuel tank ran dry and the engine quit a second time, prompting the pilot to make a landing in a hay field about 5 miles west of the destination airport. The pilot landed long, and in an attempt to avoid a fence veered 90 degrees to the left before impacting a ditch, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing. The airplane had accumulated 4.3 hours of flying time since its most recent refueling with both tanks being filled to capacity. The pilot reported that there were no pre-accident mechanical problems with the airplane. Post-accident inspection of the fuel tanks revealed that no fuel was present in either the right or left fuel tanks.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.