Varga 2150A N5601G

Summary

On 27 July 2023 at about 17:33 local time, a Varga 2150A registered N5601G was involved in an accident near Green Lake, Wisconsin, United States. 2 people were on board and 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

27 July 2023 at 17:33

Classification

Accident

Location

Green Lake, Wisconsin, United States

Coordinates

43.8865, -88.9438

Aircraft

Varga 2150A

Registration

N5601G

Category

Airplane

Year built

1985

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

South Bend → Oshkosh

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN23LA329

2 people had minor injuries.

A loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, which resulted from the pilot’s inadequate preflight planning.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he was flying the airplane to the annual Experimental Aircraft Association Airventure fly-in at the Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and was proceeding as prescribed in the Notices to Air Missions (NOTAM) pertaining to arrivals to the airport. He stated that the airplane’s engine lost power and he activated the auxiliary fuel pump, which restored engine power briefly. The engine again lost power and the pilot executed a forced landing to a corn field. The airplane nosed over during the landing and incurred substantial damage to the fuselage and vertical tail. Postaccident examination revealed no smell of fuel at the accident site and no evidence of a fuel spill. No usable quantity of fuel was found within the fuel tanks and the tanks were not breached. Examination of the airplane did not reveal any mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Automatic dependent surveillance - broadcast (ADS-B) data revealed that the flight lasted about 3.6 hours. According to the airplane operations manual, the maximum flight duration at normal cruise was about 3.9 hours without reserve, but was predicated on using a lean mixture setting. Based on the available information, it is likely that the loss of engine power was due to fuel exhaustion.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.