Cessna 310 N100CP

Summary

On 11 July 2016 at about 15:00 local time, a Cessna 310 registered N100CP was involved in an accident near Bartow, Florida, 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

11 July 2016 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Bartow, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Bartow Municipal (BOW)

Coordinates

27.9433, -81.7833

Aircraft

Cessna 310

Registration

N100CP

Category

Airplane

Year built

1971

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Aerial Observation

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bartow → Bartow

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA16LA252

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's failure to move the fuel selectors to the “main” position in accordance with the Before Landing checklist, which resulted in fuel starvation and the total loss of power of both engines.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot climbed the multiengine airplane to 13,500 ft mean sea level and performed a 2-hour aerial photography flight before descending and returning to the departure airport. As the pilot maneuvered the airplane in the traffic pattern for landing, the right engine lost power, and then the left engine lost power. The pilot concluded that the airplane would not reach the airport, so he chose swampy terrain for a forced landing, during which the wings, fuselage, and tail section sustained substantial damage. Postaccident examination of the airplane and its engines revealed no preimpact mechanical anomalies that would have prevented normal operation. Both fuel selector handles were found in the "auxiliary" position. According to the airplane manufacturer's owner's manual, the first step in the Before Landing checklist was to move each fuel selector to the "main" position. Further, the auxiliary fuel system description stated, "Since the auxiliary fuel tanks are designed for cruising flight, they are not equipped with pumps and operation near the ground (below 1,000 ft [above ground level]), using auxiliary fuel tanks is not recommended." The pilot's failure to move the fuel selectors to the "main" position in accordance with the Before Landing checklist likely led to fuel starvation to both engines and their subsequent loss of power.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.