Cessna CITATION 500 N332SE

Summary

On 5 December 2016 at about 01:53 local time, a Cessna CITATION 500 registered N332SE was involved in an accident near Gunnison, Colorado, United States. One person was 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 December 2016 at 01:53

Classification

Accident

Location

Gunnison, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Gunnison-Crested Butte Airport (GUC)

Coordinates

38.5344, -106.9317

Aircraft

Cessna CITATION 500

Registration

N332SE

Category

Airplane

Year built

1975

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Jose → Pueblo

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

CEN17LA047

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to fly a stabilized approach and his inadequate landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s failure to ensure that the airplane was properly serviced with fuel before departing on the flight.  

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot of the jet reported that he initially requested that 100 lbs of fuel be added to both fuel tanks. During the subsequent preflight inspection, the pilot decided that more fuel was needed, so he requested that the airplane's fuel tanks be topped off with fuel. However, he did not confirm the fuel levels or check the fuel gauges before takeoff. He departed on the flight and did not check the fuel gauges until about 1 hour after takeoff. He stated that, at that time, the fuel gauges were showing about 900-1,000 lbs of fuel per side, and he realized that the fuel tanks had not been topped off as requested. He reduced engine power to conserve fuel and to increase the airplane's flight endurance while he continued to his destination. When the fuel gauges showed about 400-500 lbs of fuel per side, the low fuel lights for both wing fuel tanks illuminated. The pilot reported to air traffic control that the airplane was low on fuel and diverted the flight to the nearest airport. The pilot reported that the airplane was high and fast on the visual approach for landing. He misjudged the height above the ground and later stated that the airplane "landed very hard." The airplane's left main landing gear and nose gear collapsed and the airplane veered off the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.