Cessna 210M N732TE

Summary

On 10 October 2004 at about 00:10 local time, a Cessna 210M registered N732TE was involved in an accident near Salida, Colorado, United States. 5 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

10 October 2004 at 00:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Salida, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Harriet Alexander (0V2)

Coordinates

38.5500, -106.0472

Aircraft

Cessna 210M

Registration

N732TE

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bullfrog Basin → Colorado Spring

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN05LA008

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate preflight planning which failed to determine the fuel supply was inadequate resulting in fuel exhaustion and the 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-rated passenger aboard the accident flight -- the pilot's flight instructor -- had flown the airplane to their vacation spot the previous week. The pilot followed in an automobile carrying a week's worth of supplies. The pilot estimated the instructor had 45 gallons of fuel on board when he departed. The first leg of ther trip took 1 hour, 20 minutes. There, the instructor purchased 40 gallons of fuel. The last leg took 1 hour, 10 minutes. When they prepared to return home, the pilot asked his flight instructor if he had purchased any fuel. The instructor thought he was referring to gasoline purchased for the houseboat, and he replied he had purchased 60 gallons. The pilot said that when they took off, he thought he had more fuel on board than there actually was. The takeoff and climb to 11,500 feet was made on the left tank. After 30 minutes, he switched to the right tank. Knowing the right fuel gauge was unreliable, he drew fuel from the right tank until it ran dry about 1 hour later. He switched back to the left tank and climbed to 13,500 feet. The airplane had now been in the air approximately 1 hour, 30 minutes. Ten to 15 minutes later, the engine "sputtered" and lost power. The left fuel gauge indicated 1/3 full. All attempts to restore engine power were to no avail. He turned and glided towards an airport. When he turned final for runway 24, he lost sight of the runway because the sun was in his eyes. He selected a field and touched down 1/4-mile to the right runway centerline and 1 mile short of the runway. The landing gear was torn off and the empennage was extensively damage. The left wing struck a fence post and breached the fuel tank. Fuel leaked from the tank, "but not a whole lot." The pilot said he used an average fuel consumption rate of 15 gallons per hour fuel when making endurance and range calculations. He estimated he had an hour's worth of fuel on board plus reserves. Later, he admitted the engine most likely post power due to fuel exhaustion.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.