- Date
- August 6, 2018, 12:51 local (17:51 UTC)
- Place
- Pomona, MO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N76524Cessna 120
- Defining event
- Initial climb: Fuel starvation
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 19, 2019
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA St Louis FSDO
- FAA report
- 20180806010329A
- Case key
- 98008
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's inadequate fuel management, which resulted in fuel starvation and a forced landing.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The private pilot reported that he departed the airport for the local flight with both wing fuel tanks full of fuel and the fuel selector on the left tank. After flying for about 1 hour, he landed at the airport and departed again. When the airplane was about 500 ft above ground level, the pilot intended to change the fuel selector to the right fuel tank. However, he inadvertently switched the fuel selector to the off position, and the engine lost power. The pilot immediately switched the fuel selector back to the left fuel tank and attempted to restart the engine without success. He executed a forced landing to a field, and, during the landing rollout, the airplane collided with a fence and hay bale, which resulted in substantial damage. The pilot mismanaged the fuel during flight, which resulted in fuel starvation.
Factual narrative
On August 6, 2018, about 1251 central daylight time, a Cessna 120, N76524, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing near Pomona, Missouri. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the flight, which was not on a flight plan. The airplane departed about 1145 from the West Plains Regional Airport (UNO), West Plains, Missouri, on a local flight. The pilot reported that he departed UNO with both wing fuel tanks full of fuel, and the fuel selector was on the left tank. After flying for about an hour, he landed at UNO and departed again. When the airplane was about 500 ft above ground level, the pilot intended to change the fuel selector to the right fuel tank. However, he inadvertently switched the fuel selector to the OFF position, and the engine stopped producing power. The pilot immediately switched the fuel selector back to the left fuel tank and attempted to restart the engine, but without success. He executed a forced landing to a field and during the landing rollout, the airplane collided with a fence and hay bale, which resulted in substantial damage to the airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N76524
- Reported as
- Cessna 120
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 10958
- Built
- 1946
- Airframe hours
- 4,424.11
- Engine
- Continental O-200-A4B, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- Unknown
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 26, 2018
- Departed
- UNO · West Plains, MO
- Destination
- UNO · West Plains, MO
- Equipment
- None
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 84
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2018
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 1,576 total · 1,200 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 210° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.14 inHg
- Observed at
- UNO, 2 nm away
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 6, 2019, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.4 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.