Cessna T210L N6864C

Summary

On 27 December 2006 at about 03:15 local time, a Cessna T210L registered N6864C was involved in an accident near North St. Louis, Missouri, 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

27 December 2006 at 03:15

Classification

Accident

Location

North St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Coordinates

38.8381, -90.2878

Aircraft

Cessna T210L

Registration

N6864C

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Positioning

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cahokia → St. Charles

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

CHI07CA047

1 person had minor injuries.

Fuel starvation due to an inadequate fuel supply. A factor associated with the accident was the soft terrain encountered during the landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane contacted trees and the terrain during an off airport forced landing following a loss of engine power. The pilot reported he was making "slow banking" turns to the left during the flight in order to maneuver around controlled airspace. He reported that during the flight the engine began running rough at which time he noticed the fuel flow dropped from 90 pounds per hour (pph) to 70 pph with a manifold pressure of 24 inches. The pilot reported he turned on the fuel boost pump and switched to the right fuel tank. He stated that the engine power increased, but the fuel flow was still fluctuating between 110 and 80 pph. The pilot stated he then heard the engine stop at which time he switched the fuel selector back to the left tank. The pilot reported the engine regained power, but the fuel flow continued to fluctuate from 85 to below 70 pph. The pilot reported the airplane could not maintain level flight and he began looking for an off airport landing site. He located a large, lit parking lot and descended toward it. During the descent, the pilot realized he was not going to be able to make it to the parking lot, so he located a nearby clearing in which to land. The pilot reported he confirmed the landing gear were extended and he added 10 degrees of flaps prior to landing. He also turned the fuel selector to Off and shut off the master switch prior to touchdown. The nose gear collapsed after contacting the soft terrain and the wingtip contacted trees during the landing roll. Post accident inspection of the airplane failed to reveal any mechanical failure/malfunction that would have resulted in the loss of engine power. The inspection revealed there was less than a pint of fuel remaining in the right fuel tank and approximately seven gallons of fuel in the left fuel tank. No fuel was present in the fuel lines from the fuel pump to the fuel flow valve. The pilot reported he departed with 15 gallons of fuel on board the airplane and that the accident flight lasted approximately 10 minutes.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.