# Accident 20031007030409A: Cessna 140, Ridgeway, VA, October 7, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 7, 2003, 19:00 local time
- Place: Ridgeway, VA
- Airport: Pace Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Forced/Precautionary Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 36.5853° N, 79.8939° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.5853&lon=-79.8939&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2370N, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N2370N-2006-11-20) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 140 (registry code 2071602, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-140) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental C85 series (registry code 17008, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-c85-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 140
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,150 total, 50 in this make and model, 100 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB IAD04CA002](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD04CA002) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20031007030409A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) AIRCRAFT LOST POWER RIGHT AFTER TAKEOFF FROM RUNWAY 36, AND CRASHED INTO TREES APPROX. 1/4 MILE FROM THE END OF THE RUNWAY. THE ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE ENGINE OPERATED NORMALLY, THE RIGHT FUEL TANK WAS FULL, AND THE LEFT FUEL TANK WAS EMPTY. THERE WERE NO MALFUNCTIONS OF THE FUEL SYSTEM. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE HAD BEEN FLYING FROM THE LEFT TANK ONLY, FOR APPROX. 35 MINUTES, PRIOR TO THE LOSS OF POWER. AN INTERVIEW OF THE AIRCRAFT OWNER/AIRFIELD OPERATOR AND OF THE PILOT WHO HAD LAST FLOWN THE AIRCRAFT REVEALED THAT APPROX. 1 HR AND TWENTY MINUTES HAD BEEN FLOWN FROM THE LEFT FUEL TANK, AFTER STARTING WITH BOTH TANKS FULL, ONE WEEK PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT, AND THAT THE AIRCRAFT HAD NOT BEEN REFUELED SINCE, INCLUDING ON THE DAY THE ACCIDENT TOOK PLACE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB IAD04CA002](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD04CA002), Oct 7, 2003: Cessna 140 (N2370N), Ridegway, VA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's improper pre-flight planning, which resulted in an engine failure due to fuel exhaustion.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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