# Accident 20161227020729A: Cessna 172H, Bridgeport, AL, December 27, 2016

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 27, 2016, 16:00 local time
- Place: Bridgeport, AL
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.9858° N, 85.7228° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.9858&lon=-85.7228&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3772F, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3772F-2018-04-25) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172H (registry code 2072424, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172h) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-300 series (registry code 17022, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172H
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Airline transport
- Pilot flight hours: 5,000 total, 500 in this make and model, 10 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA17LA075](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA17LA075) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20161227020729A

## Narrative

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

PILOT AND PASSENGER DEPARTED (KAPT) FOR A LOCAL FLIGHT. PILOT STATED THAT HE DID NOT VISUALLY CHECK THE FUEL, BUT SAID THAT HIS DIGITAL FUEL TOTALIZER SHOWED 11 GALLONS OF FUEL ON BOARD.  APPROXIMATELY 20 MINUTES INTO THE FLIGHT,  THE PILOT SELECTED THE RIGHT HAND FUEL SELECTOR BECAUSE HE NOTICED A SLIGHT FUEL IMBALANCE ON THE FUEL GAUGES FAVORING THE RIGHT HAND WING.  THE PILOT THEN MADE NUMEROUS RIGHT HAND TURNS AT ANGLES HE ESTIMATED TO BE BETWEEN 40 DEGREES AND 60 DEGREES OF BANK TO SHOW HIS PASSENGER HIS MOTHER?S HOME. UPON COMPLETING SEVERAL TURNS HE CAME WINGS LEVEL AND THE AIRCRAFT BEGAN TO SPUTTER AND LOOSE ENGINE POWER. THE PILOT BEGAN NAVIGATING BACK TO THE AIRPORT OF DEPARTURE, BUT WAS NEVER ABLE TO REGAIN ENGINE POWER AND ELECTED TO MAKE ON EMERGENCY LANDING IN A PLOWED FIELD. UPON TOUCH DOWN IN THE FIELD, THE NOSE GEAR SHEARED OFF AND THE AIRCRAFT FLIPPED OVER DUE TO HEAVY MUD IN THE FIELD.  DURING THE POST-CRASH INVESTIGATION, APPROXIMATELY 4 GALLONS WAS DRAINED FROM THE LEFT HAND FUEL TANK AND APPROXIMATELY 5 GALLONS FROM THE RIGHT HAND FUEL TANK. THE DIGITAL FUEL TOTALIZER SHOWED 8.7 GALLONS OF FUEL ON BOARD. THE PILOT INDICATED THAT AFTER THE CRASH HE MOVED THE FUEL SELECTOR BACK TO ?BOTH?.

## 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 ERA17LA075](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA17LA075), Dec 27, 2016: Cessna 172 (N3772F), Bridgeport, AL, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's decision to make steep turns to the right while operating on the right fuel tank with low fuel quantity, which led to a loss of engine power due to unporting of the right fuel tank and…

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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