# Accident 20050626024149A: Cessna 182F, Lapeer, MI, June 26, 2005

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: June 26, 2005
- Place: Lapeer, MI
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 43.0500° N, 83.2833° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.0500&lon=-83.2833&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3184U, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3184U-2011-01-07) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 182F (registry code 2072714, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-182f) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental O-470 series (registry code 17026, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 182F
- Reported engine: CONT O470*
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 848 total, 684 in this make and model, 26 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI05CA166](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI05CA166) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050626024149A

## Narrative

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

(-23) AFTER DEPARTING FNT PILOT STATED THAT HIS ENGINE FAILED AND HE WAS UNSUCCESSFUL IN HIS ATTEMPT AT RESTARTING IT. HE ATTEMPTED TO MAKE AN EMERGENCY LANDING IN A CORNFIELD. SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE NOSE GEAR TOUCHED DOWN FIRST, AND WITH SUCH FORCE THAT IT WAS TORN FROM THE AIRCRAFT. THE AIRCRAFT THEN SKIDDED APPROXIMATELY 90 FEET BEFORE "NOSING OVER" AND COMING TO REST UPSIDE DOWN. IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE LEFT FUEL CAP WAS NOT SECURED IN PLACE, BUT WAS SECURED TO THE AIRCRAFT BY A CHAIN. THE FUEL CAP IS RED IN COLOR. RED "NICK MARKS" WERE DISCOVERED AROUND THE OPENING OF THE LEFT FUEL TANK EXTENDING OUT TO APPROXIMATELY THE LENGTH OF THE FUEL CAP RETAINING CHAIN. FAINT STREAKING WAS NOTED AFT OF THE LEFT FUEL TANK OPENING CONTINUING TO THE TRAILING EDGE OF THE LEFT WING. A FUEL STAIN WAS LEFT IN THE DIRT BELOW THE LEFT FUEL TANK OPENING THAT MEASURED APPROXIMATELY 12 INCHES IN DIAMETER AND 4 INCHES DEEP. THE RIGHT FUEL CAP WAS SECURED IN PLACE. NO FUEL WAS FOUND IN EITHER THE LEFT OR RIGHT FUEL TANKS. ATTEMPTS AT DRAINING FUEL FROM THE TANK SUMPS PRODUCED NO FUEL, AS WELL. THE FUEL SELECTOR IN THE COCKPIT WAS SELECTED TO THE "BOTH POSITION. AFTER THE AIRCRAFT WAS UPRIGHTED, THE PROP WAS "PULLED THROUGH" WHICH INDICATED THAT NO APPARENT SEIZING OF THE ENGINE HAD OCCURRED. EACH CYLINDER SHOWED EVIDENCE OF COMPRESSION, ALONG WITH THE MECHANICAL "CLUNK" OF THE MAGNETO IMPULSE COUPLING.

## 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 CHI05CA166](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI05CA166), Jun 26, 2005: Cessna 182F (N3184U), Lapeer, MI, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection due to his failure to physically verify the security of the fuel tank caps, the unsecured fuel tank cap and 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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