Cessna P210 N5404W

Summary

On 31 May 2020 at about 19:30 local time, a Cessna P210 registered N5404W was involved in an accident near Heber City, Utah, 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

31 May 2020 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Heber City, Utah, United States

Nearest airport

Heber City Municipal (HCR)

Coordinates

40.4889, -111.4194

Aircraft

Cessna P210

Registration

N5404W

Category

Airplane

Year built

1981

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Diego → Evanston

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR20CA158

Nobody was injured.

The pilots failure to switch the fuel pump to the 'OFF' position during landing, resulting in a loss of engine power and subsequent collision with a fence during landing. Contributing to the accident was a modified before landing checklist which omitted the fuel pump switch position.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that after completing the descent/approach checklist, he turned on the auxiliary fuel pump and switched from the left fuel tank to the right fuel tank. While on final approach, the pilot reported that he neglected to turn off the auxiliary fuel pump. When he made a slight power reduction, the engine flooded and lost power. The airplane subsequently touched down in the grass short of and to the right of the runway. During the landing roll, the right wing collided with a fence pole. The right wing was substantially damaged. The manufacturer's before landing checklist requires the auxiliary fuel pump in the 'OFF' position during landing. A caution follows: "Failure to turn the auxiliary fuel pump off may result in a complete power loss at reduced throttle settings due to an excessively rich mixture." The pilot reported that he had modified the before landing checklist which omitted the fuel pump switch position.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.