# Accident 20080517837689A: Cessna 337A, West Creek, NJ, May 17, 2008 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: May 17, 2008, 12:45 local time - Place: West Creek, NJ - Airport: Eagles Nest - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Forced Landing - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 39.6611° N, 74.3056° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6611&lon=-74.3056&mi=10 - Aircraft: N5382S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5382S-2008-10-28) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 337A (registry code 2075704, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-337a) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Continental IO-360 series (registry code 17025, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-360-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 337A - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 2 - Pilot flight hours: 3,775 total, 285 in this make and model, 0 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC08FA184](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC08FA184) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080517837689A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23)ON MAY 17, 2009, AT OR ABOUT 12:45 EASTER DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME, A CESSNA CE-377A, REGISTER AS N5382S, OWNED AND PILOTED BY A COMMERCIAL PILOT, WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT IMPACTED TERRAIN IN DENSE WOODED PINELANDS, APPROXIMATELY 200 METERS SOUTHEAST OF RUNWAY 32 AT EAGLES NEST AIRPORT, WEST CREEK, OCEAN COUNTY, NJ (K31E). THE PILOT AND THREE CREWMEMBERS WERE ON BOARD THE AIRCRAFT AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE FLIGHT WAS BEING CONDUCTED UNDER CONTRACT TO THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY FOR THE PURPOSES OF PERFORMING AERIAL SPOTTING OF MARINE WILDLIFE WHILE OPERATING UNDER 14 CFR PART 91. VISUAL METEROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER WERE FATALLY INJURED. THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF AN ELT BEING ACTIVATED AND EMERGENCY RESPONDERS DID NOT LOCATE THE AIRCAFT UNTIL APPROXIMATELY 16:50 EDT AFTER BECOMING AWARE OF A CELL PHONE CALL MADE BY ONE OF THE CRASH SURVIVORS. TWO PASSENGERS WERE CRITICALLY INJURED AND WERE EXTRACTED FROM THE CRASH SCENE AND HOSPITALIZED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM MILLVILLE AIRPORT, JN (KMIV) AT APPROXIMATELY 11:08 EST. INFORMATION OBTAINED DURING AN INITIAL INTERVIEW WITH ONE OF THE SURVIVORS REVEALED THAT THE PILOT HAD INFORMED THE PASSENGERS OF A "FUEL PROBLEM" JUST 10 MINUTES PRIOR TO THE ACTUAL IMPACT WITH THE TERRAIN. INVESTIGATION AT THE ACCIDENT SCENE REVEALED THAT NO POST CRASH FIRE HAD ENSUED AFTER THE IMPACT AND THE AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE AND DEBRIS FIELD WERE FOUND RELATIVELY CONTAINED TO THE INITIAL IMPACT SITE. A FOUR FOOT SECTION OF THE LEFT WING TIP ASSEMBLY WAS LOCATED APPROXIMATELY 40 METERS FROM THE MAIN WRECKAGE AND FOUND TO HAVE SEPARATED ALONG THE ROUTE OF FLIGHT AFTER THE AIRCRAFT CAME INTO CONTACT WITH TREES. BOTH ENGINES WERE ALSO WERE FOUND TO HAVE SEPARATED FROM THE AIRCRAFT AND WERE LOCATED AT THE MAIN WRECKAGE SITE. AIRMAN AND AIRCRAFT RECORDS ARE NOT IMMEDIATELY AVAILABLE AND EFFORTS HAVE BEEN MADE TO LOCATE THEM. THE INVESTIGATION IS CONTINUING AND AEA-FSDO 17 IS WORKING WITH THE DC NTSB OFFICE TO DEVELOP FURTHER FACTS TO THE INVESTIGATION. (-23 AMENDMENT) THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION UPDATES THE ORIGINAL FAA FORM 8020-23 SUBMITTED ON MAY 21, 2008. (NOTE: BECAUSE OF THE COMPLEXITY OF THE INVESTIGATION AND DIFFICULTY IN OBTAINING INFORMATION, THE FILING OF THIS UPDATE WAS SUBSEQUENTLY DELAYED.) THIS REPORT BRINGS THE ACCIDENT INFORMATION UP TO DATE AND PROVIDES CLOSURE TO THE INVESTIGATION. AIRMAN INFORMATION: THE PILOT WAS ALSO THE OWNER, OPERATOR AND MECHANIC OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE PILOT’S FAMILY COULD NOT PRODUCE ANY PILOT RECORDS FOR THIS INVESTIGATION. THE DECEASED PILOT DID HAVE A REGULATORY CHECK RIDE CONDUCTED ON FEB. 24, 2008 BY A CERTIFIED CFII. THE PILOT’S LAST MEDICAL INDICATED THAT HE REPORTED TO HAVE 2950 HOURS. THE PILOT WAS RATED FOR THE AIRCRAFT BEING OPERATED. THE PILOT AND AIRCRAFT ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. THE PILOT PURCHASED THE AIRCRAFT IN MARCH OF 1998 AND WAS THE SOLE MAINTENANCE PROVIDER OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE PILOT HELD A VALID AIRFRAME AND POWERPLANT CERTIFICATE WITH INSPECTION AUTHORIZATION. A BLUE RIBBON PACKAGE WAS OBTAINED FROM AIRMAN RECORDS AND FORWARDED TO THE NTSB IIC. THE RESULTS OF THE TOXICOLOGY REPORT OF THE PILOT FROM CAMI WERE NEGATIVE. THIS INFORMATION WAS FORWARDED TO THE NTSB IIC. AIRCRAFT RECORDS: A REVIEW OF AIRCRAFT RECORDS PROVIDED BY THE FAMILY WAS INITIALLY FOUND TO BE INCOMPLETE. SUBSEQUENT RECORDS PROVIDED BY THE FAMILY’S LEGAL COUNSEL SUPPLEMENTED THE INITIAL RECORDS PROVIDED, BUT WERE ALSO FOUND TO BE INCOMPLETE AND POORLY MAINTAINED. THE LAST RECORD OF AN ANNUAL INSPECTION WAS RECORDED ON 04-12-03. NO RECORDS WERE AVAILABLE FOR MAINTENANCE PERFORMED FROM FEBRUARY 10, 2004 UNTIL MAY 17, 2008, THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT. A REVIEW OF THESE RECORDS, CLEARLY INDICATE THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS POORLY MAINTAINED DURING THE DECEASED PILOT’S PERIOD OF OWNERSHIP AND DURING THE TIME THE AIRCRAFT WAS MAINTAINED BY HIM. DESPITE THE ABNORMALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH RECORDKEEPING , HOWEVER, THERE WERE NO ISSUES THAT RELATE DIRECTLY TO THE CAUSE OR CIRCUMSTANCES ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACCIDENT. HOWEVER, THE LAST THREE YEARS OF DATA RELATING TO MAINTENANCE PERFORMED ON THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW. THE AIRCRAFT RECORDS AND DETAILED ANALYSIS WERE FORWARDED TO THE NTSB IIC. ENGINE TEAR DOWN AND ANALYSIS OF BOTH FRONT AND REAR ENGINES DID NOT REVEAL ANY ANOMALIES. BOTH ENGINES RAN NORMALLY IN THE TEST CELL. TEAR DOWN AND ENGINE RUNS WERE COORDINATED WITH THE NTSB IIC AND THE FAA. ADDITIONAL FACTS: ***THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT REFUELED ON MAY 17, 2008, THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT, AND HAD BEEN OPERATED FOR MORE THAN 4.7 HOURS ON MAY 15, 2008, THE DATE OF THE LAST KNOWN FUELING. **** THE AIRCRAFT WAS LAST FUELED WITH 55 GALS (MAIN TANKS ONLY) ON MAY 15, 2008. WITNESSES STATE THAT THE AUX TANKS WERE NOT SERVICED AT THAT TIME PER THE PILOT'S REQUEST. ****MAX FUEL IS 92 GALS. FOR THE MAIN TANKS AND 44 GALS IN AUX TANKS FOR A TOTAL OF 136 GALS., OR 816 LBS. ****THE AIRCRAFT DID NOT OPERATE ON MAY 16, 2008 DUE TO WEATHER ***BASED ON WITNESS STATEMENTS AND FBO FUEL RECORDS, THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT FUELED PRIOR TO TAKEOFF ON MAY 17, 2008. ****DATA FROM THE GPS AND HAND WRITTEN NOTES LOCATED AT THE CRASH SITE CONFIRM THAT THE AIRCRAFT FLEW 4.7 HOURS ON MAY 15, 2008 AND APPROXIMATELY 1.8 HOURS ON MAY 17, 2008. ****A COMPANY PILOT, FAMILIAR WITH THE AIRCRAFT, STATED THAT AVERAGE FUEL BURN IS 12 GALS./HR/ ENGINE. THIS IS A QUESTIONABLE BURN RATE AS THIS ANALYSIS WILL SHOW. A BURN RATE OF 9 GALS./HR/ENGINE IS A FAR MORE REASONABLE ASSUMPTION. ***TOTAL FUEL MEASURED POST ACCIDENT WAS APPROXIMATELY 21 GALS. OR 126 LBS. **** FUEL MEASURED FROM THE AIRCRAFT FUEL TANKS AT THE ACCIDENT SCENE ARE AS FOLLOWS: RIGHT MAIN TANK: EMPTY (TRACE) RIGHT AUX TANK: 7/8 FULL OR 19.25 GALS. LEFT MAIN TANK: EMPTY (TRACE) LEFT AUX TANK: 2 GALS. ****A COMPANY PILOT, FAMILIAR WITH THE AIRCRAFT, STATED THAT AVERAGE FUEL BURN IS 12 GALS./HR/PER ENGINE. THIS IS A QUESTIONABLE BURN RATE AS THIS ANALYSIS WILL SHOW. A BURN RATE OF 9 GALS./HR/ENGINE IS A FAR MORE REASONABLE ASSUMPTION. ***THE MAY 17, 2008 FLIGHT LASTED 1.8 HOURS. AT A 12 GAL./HR/ENGINE BURN RATE APPROXIMATELY 43.2 GALS,. OR 259 LBS. OF FUEL WOULD HAVE BEEN CONSUMEDDURING THE FLIGHT. COMBINING THE MAY 15, 2008 FLIGHT TIME OF 4.7 HOURS AND THE MAY 17, 2008 FLIGHT TIME OF 1.8 HOURS, TOTALING 6.5 HOURS, THE AIRCRAFT WOULD HAVE CONSUMED APPROXIMATELY 156 GALS. OR 936 LBS., WHICH IS IMPROBABLE DUE TO THE MAX CAPACITY OF THE AIRCRAFT BEING 136 GALS., OR 816 LBS. IN ADDITION, 21 GALS. OR 126 LBS. WERE RECOVERED AT THE ACCIDENT SITE. ***FUEL COMPUTATION ESTIMATES ARE BASED ON WITNESS STATEMENTS, FUEL RECORDS AND ACTUAL FUEL QUANTITY AMOUNTS OBTAINED AT THE CRASH SCENE. THE STANDARD WEIGHT OF AVGAS 100LL WAS USED: 1 GALLON = 6.0 LBS. ***AVERAGE FUEL BURN AND RECORDED FLIGHT TIME ON THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT ARE CONSISTENT WITH FUEL DEPLETION. FUEL THAT WAS AVAILABLE AND LOCATED IN THE R/H AUX TANK COULD NOT BE USED TO SUPPLY THE REAR ENGINE SINCE THE RIGHT MAIN TANK WAS EMPTY. THIS IS DUE TO SYSTEM DESIGN. ***THE AIRCRAFT WAS SEVERELY OVER WEIGHT AT THE TIME THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED KMIV ON MAY 15, 2008 AND ON MAY 17, 2008, THE DATE THE DATE OF THE ACCIDENT, DESPITE HAVING NOT BEEN REFUELED. *** MAX GROSS WEIGHT (GW) IS 4200 LBS. PER FAA TCDS SHEET A6CE. ****A BASIC EMPTY WEIGHT (BEW) OF THE AIRCRAFT WAS CALCULATED TO BE APPROXIMATELY 2856 LBS. THE LAST KNOWN WEIGHT AND BALANCE WAS DOCUMENTED ON FAA FORM 337, DATED NOVEMBER 5, 1989. ***TOTAL CREW, PASSENGERS AND EQUIPMENT (PAYLOAD) TOTALED 1060 LBS. FOR ALL FLIGHTS OR A OPERATING WEIGHT OF (BEW + PAYLOAD) = (BOW) 3916 LBS. IN THIS CONDITION, ONLY 284 LBS. FOR FUEL OR 47.3 GALS. COULD BE ADDED TO REMAIN AT THE AIRCRAFT IN GW. ***CALCULATIONS OF PILOT AND PASSENGER WEIGHTS WERE BASED ON INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM THE MEDICAL EXAMINERS OFFICE, AND THROUGH BOTH THE MEDICAL CARE FACILITIES AND GEO MARINE, THE COMPANY IN WHICH THE PASSENGERS HAD BEEN EMPLOYED WITH. ***CALCULATIONS FOR OTHER EQUIPMENT INSTALLED ON THE AIRCRAFT WERE BASED ON ACTUAL OBSERVATIONS, AND RESEARCH OBTAINED THROUGH THE INTERNET. THESE ITEMS INCLUDED: PFDS, LIFE RAFT, CAMERA EQUIPMENT AND MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS. CARRY-ON EQUIPMENT IS BASED ON STANDARD AVERAGE WEIGHT AS IDENTIFIED IN FAA ADVISORY CIRCULAR 120-27E, DATED JUNE 6, 2005. ***CALCULATIONS FOR SEATING AND CABIN AND CARGO COMPARTMENT CENTROIDS WERE OBTAINED FORM THE CESSNA 337-A PILOT OPERATING HANDBOOK. ADDITIONAL FACTS: ***THE OWNER/OPERATOR DID NOT APPLY FOR A WAIVER FROM THE FAA TO OPERATE IN A MANNER THAT WAS CONSISTENT WITH AERIAL SURVEY OPERATIONS OR CONSTANT WITH THE TERMS OF THE CONTRACT IN WHICH THE OWNER OPERATOR AGREED TO OPERATE THE AIRCRAFT. NEGATIVE CONFIRMATION WAS OBTAINED FROM BOS FSDO- DAL FSDO AND PHL FSDO. ADDITIONALLY, ATO DID NOT HAVE A RECORD ON FILE INDICATING THAT A FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED FOR EITHER THE MAY 15, 2008 FLIGHT OR THE MAY, 17 FLIGHT. ***AIRCRAFT RECORD DOCUMENTATION WAS INCOMPLETE AND THE AIRWORTHINESS OF THE AIRCRAFT PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT COULD NOT BE DETERMINED DUE TO THE MISSING OR INCOMPLETE RECORD DOCUMENTATION. ALL ASPECTS OF THIS INVESTIGATION WERE SHARED AND COORDINATED WITH THE NTSB IIC. SPECIFIC DETAILS OF THIS INVESTIGATION ARE CONTAINED IN THE ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIVE FILE AT AEA-FSDO-17. THIS INVESTIGATION IS CONSIDERED CLOSED, BUT MAY BE REOPENED SHOULD ADDITIONAL FACTS BE OBTAINED. END ## 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 NYC08FA184](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC08FA184), May 17, 2008: Cessna 337A (N5382S), West Creek, NJ, substantial damage, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's departure with insufficient fuel for the planned flight, and his improper in-flight fuel management, which resulted in a total loss of power in both engines due to fuel starvation.… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.