Aviat PITTS S-2B N221RS

Summary

On 5 March 2006 at about 21:15 local time, a Aviat PITTS S-2B registered N221RS was involved in an accident near Severance, Colorado, United States. 2 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

5 March 2006 at 21:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Severance, Colorado, United States

Coordinates

40.5299, -104.8497

Aircraft

Aviat PITTS S-2B

Registration

N221RS

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Fort Collins → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN06LA046

Nobody was injured.

fuel exhaustion and the pilot's failure to refuel the airplane. Contributing factors were the inaccurate fuel flow reading and the pilot's incorrect fuel consumption calculations.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane's main 23-gallon fuel tank was serviced to capacity. The pilot flew one passenger for about 30 minutes, returned to the airport, dropped off the passenger, boarded a second passenger, and took off again. They had been flying for about the same period of time when the engine suddenly began to run rough, then lost power. He made a forced landing in an open field. During the landing roll, the airplane nosed over, crushing the vertical stabilizer and breaking a rib in the upper left wing. The digital fuel flow gauge indicated 15.5 gallons of fuel had been consumed, and 7.5 gallons remained. Some fuel was leaking from the tank. The pilot said it looked and smelled like kerosene. The fixed base operator (FBO) was notified and fuel that had been sumped that day from the fuel trucks and fuel farm were quarantined. The salvage crew that recovered the airplane said it appeared the fuel may have mixed with smoke oil, giving the appearance and smell of kerosene. The airplane was equipped with a smoke-generating system. Neither the fuel nor smoke oil tanks had been compromised. All supply lines were intact and securely fastened. Less than a quart of fuel was recovered from the fuel tank. Thirteen jars of fuel that had been sumped from the FBO's fuel trucks and from the fuel farm were retrieved and examined. They were all clear, blue (similar to 100-LL), and appeared to be free of contaminants. According to the manufacturer, the engine will burn 17.4 gallons per hour (gph) at 75 percent power which is 195 horsepower (hp) or 2,450 revolutions per minute (rpm), when leaned for best power. At full (100 percent) power, or 260 hp and 2,700 rpm, the engine will burn 21.5 gph. The pilot subsequently submitted a statement, indicating he had "run out of gas."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.