# NTSB ANC04IA078: Cessna 172M, N1453V, Aniak, AK, July 14, 2004 - Type: NTSB incident investigation - Classification: Incident · No injuries · Incident investigation · Final report - Date: July 13, 2004, 16:30 local (Jul 14, 2004, 00:30 UTC) - Place: Aniak, AK - Coordinates: 61.583332, -159.5 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.5833&lon=-159.5000&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report July 7, 2005 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: Fairbanks FSDO-01 - NTSB case key (mKey): 59640 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC04IA078 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/59640/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC04IA078 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadequate in-flight planning/decision which resulted in fuel exhaustion and the loss of engine power. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, cruise - normal - in-flight planning/decision - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - fluid,fuel - exhaustion (cause) - refueling - not performed, pilot in command (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - In flight collision with terrain/water, emergency descent/landing - terrain condition - tundra ## Analysis The airline transport pilot was conducting an air taxi passenger flight when the airplane's engine lost power and he was forced to make an emergency landing. The airplane received minor damage during the subsequent landing on tundra-covered terrain. The flight consisted of four takeoffs and landings, and had covered about 160 miles. An FAA inspector inspected the airplane, and found no usable amount of fuel in either wing tank, with no signs of leakage or spillage. According to the FAA inspector, the pilot indicated he added fuel prior to his departure, but did not observe the actual amount of fuel in the tanks. In his written report to the NTSB, the pilot did not indicate that there were any mechanical problems with the airplane. When the airplane was refueled, it started and ran without difficulties. ## Factual narrative On July 13, 2004, about 1630 Alaska daylight time, a Cessna 172M airplane, N1453V, sustained minor damage during an in-flight collision with terrain following a total loss of engine power during cruise flight, about 4 miles northwest of Aniak, Alaska. The airplane was being operated by Inland Aviation Services of Aniak as a visual flight rules (VFR) air taxi flight under Title 14, CFR Part 135 when the accident occurred. The airline transport pilot and sole passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight departed Holy Cross, Alaska, about 1610. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on July 13, the director of operations for the operator said when the airplane did not return from Holy Cross, an airplane was sent to look for it. He said the pilot of the search plane located the accident airplane on the tundra. The director of operations reported that the search pilot made radio contact with the pilot of the accident airplane who told him his engine had quit, necessitating an emergency landing. During a telephone conversation with the NTSB IIC on July 16, an FAA aviation safety inspector who went to the crash site said the accident airplane's fuel system was intact showing no signs of leakage or spills. No fuel was found in the right wing tank, about two gallons of fuel were found in the left wing tank, and about 1/4 cup of fuel was found in the fuel lines and carburetor. The Pilot Operating Handbook (POH) indicates there is about 1.5 gallons of unusable fuel in each wing tank. The FAA inspector said the fuselage sustained minor damage during the emergency landing. The flight consisted of takeoff and landings at three airports, and a return to the departure airport, or four total takeoffs and landings. The total distance covered by the flight was about 165 miles. The operator's fuel log indicated the pilot added 13.9 gallons of fuel to the tanks prior to the flight. The FAA inspector who went to the accident site and interviewed the pilot, said the pilot told him he looked in the tanks prior to adding fuel, but did not "dip" the tanks to ascertain the quantity of fuel remaining in the tanks. He also said the pilot told him he flight-planned the airplane's fuel burn at 5.5 gallons per hour (gph) for the trip. According to the airplane's POH, depending on the variables of runup, taxi, takeoff, and time to climb, the pilot should plan on the engine using an additional 1.0 to 2.6 gallons per takeoff. The POH indicates that the fuel burn at 65% cruise rpm, below 2,500 feet msl, is 7.2 gph, and at 75% cruise power, 8.2 gph. According to the POH, the cruise airspeed at 65% power below 2,500 feet msl, is 117 mph true airspeed (TAS), and at 75% power, 126 mph TAS. Accordingly, depending on the cruise power selected, for a distance of 165 miles with four takeoffs and landings in a no wind condition, the pilot should expect the engine to use between 14.1 and 21.1 gallons of fuel for the flight. The FAA inspector said after the airplane was recovered, the engine was started and operated without difficulty. The pilot did not indicate any preincident mechanical anomalies with the airplane in the NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1453V](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N1453V-2017-09-19), registration cancelled 2017-09-19, S/N 17263590, built 1974 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172M - Registry model: [Cessna 172M](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172m) (registry code 2072418) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17263590 - Airframe hours: 9422 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-E2D 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Minor damage - Flight: Part 135 - Operator: Inland Aviation Serv - Registered owner: Inland Holdings - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, June 8, 2004, 93 hours before - Departed: HCA, Holy Cross, AK - Destination: PANI, Aniak, AK - Flight plan: Company VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 54; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review August 1, 2003; seat: left; flight hours: 4,300 total, 150 in this make and model, 182 in the last 90 days, 61 in the last 30 days, 5 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 120° at 11 knots, gusting 17 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20040713014319A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040713014319A), Jul 13, 2004: Cessna 172M, Aniak, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) Engine quit on approach to Aniak, Alaska 3 miles short of the runway. ## Other investigations on N1453V (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 ANC06LA049](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC06LA049), Apr 26, 2006: Cessna 172 (N1453V), Tuluksak, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadvertent stall/mush during takeoff-initial climb, which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees and terrain. Factors associated with the accident were the pilot's excessive… 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. --- 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.