Cessna 210J N3320S

Summary

On 14 January 2015 at about 14:15 local time, a Cessna 210J registered N3320S was involved in an accident near Dodge City, Kansas, United States. 3 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 2 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

14 January 2015 at 14:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Dodge City, Kansas, United States

Coordinates

37.7467, -99.9675

Aircraft

Cessna 210J

Registration

N3320S

Category

Airplane

Year built

1969

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wellington → Dodge City

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN15LA107

1 person was seriously injured.

The loss of engine power on approach due to fuel exhaustion, which resulted from the pilot's improper preflight fuel planning and inspection.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot reported that he departed on a 1-hour cross-country flight with the fuel tank gauges showing about 1/4 tank each. The left fuel tank was selected at takeoff. After 20 minutes of flight, the pilot switched to the right fuel tank and noticed that the right fuel tank gauge dropped unusually fast to near empty. The pilot then selected the left fuel tank and entered a left downwind to his destination airport. Upon turning onto the base leg, the engine lost power. The pilot's attempts to restart the engine were not successful. The pilot conducted a forced landing, and the airplane impacted the ground about 1 mile from the destination airport. Examination of the airplane wreckage showed the fuel selector valve was positioned to the left wing tank. The three-bladed propeller blades were bent upward from impact but did not show curling or twisting, indicating that the engine was not producing power at impact. The airframe gascolator had just enough fuel to fill the bowl, and no fuel came out of the fuel feeder line. Neither wing tank contained any fuel. A certificated aircraft mechanic from a nearby airport who had arrived within 15 minutes of the accident reported that he did not smell aviation gasoline in the air or on the ground. The pilot reported that more accurate fuel management and awareness would have prevented the accident. He stated that the flight hours in his pilot log indicated that he had enough fuel for the flight after his most recent top-off refueling but that he likely had flown the airplane 20 to 30 minutes more than his pilot logs indicated. He stated that fuel tanks should be visually inspected before flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.