Skaggs Ronnie Lynn RANS S6S N531VS

Summary

On 27 November 2015 at about 18:00 local time, a Skaggs Ronnie Lynn RANS S6S registered N531VS was involved in an accident near Oldtown, Maryland, 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

27 November 2015 at 18:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Oldtown, Maryland, United States

Coordinates

39.5600, -78.6200

Aircraft

Skaggs Ronnie Lynn RANS S6S

Registration

N531VS

Category

Airplane

Year built

2007

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Fallston → Cumberland

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA16CA072

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to visually inspect the fuel level during the preflight inspection, which resulted in fuel starvation and a subsequent off-field landing and impacted terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he had filled the airplane's fuel tanks the day before the cross-country flight, but did not visually check the fuel level in the tanks during the preflight inspection. The pilot reported that he estimated the flight would take about 1.5 hours, and full fuel tanks would have given him more than 3 hours of flight time. The pilot reported that he was 10 miles from his destination when the engine sputtered and lost power and he made an off-airport landing. The pilot reported that he saw trees in front of him and attempted a left turn to avoid the trees and impacted terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that prior to the loss of engine power, there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot stated that he estimated about a gallon of fuel was drained from the wing fuel tanks after the accident and the unusable fuel for the airplane is 1.25 gallons.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.