CEN19TA335

The pilot was conducting a cross-country flight. The airplane was at 4,500 ft mean sea level and descending when the low fuel pressure light illuminated; the engine immediately lost all power. The pilot maneuvered the airplane for a forced landing to a road, during which the airplane hit tree branches and veered off the road, resulting in substantial damage. A postaccident examination revealed only a small amount of fuel in the fuel tanks; neither tank was breached. There was no evidence of mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. The circumstances are consistent with a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

On September 18, 2019, about 1755 central daylight time, a Vans RV 4 airplane, N64HS, was substantially when it was involved in an accident near De Soto, Mississippi. The commercial pilot and passenger sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The cross country flight departed about 1505 from Marion County Airport (X35), Dunnellon, Florida, and was en route to Key Field Airport (MEI), Meridian, Mississippi. According to a written statement submitted by the pilot, the airplane was at 4,500 ft mean sea level and was descending. The low fuel pressure light illuminated and the engine immediately lost all power. The pilot maneuvered the airplane for a forced landing to a road. During the forced landing the airplane hit a few tree branches and veered off of the road to the left. The airplane came to rest in a ditch and the fuselage, engine mounts, and empennage were substantially damaged. According to the Federal Aviation Administration inspector who responded to the accident there was only a small amount of fuel in the fuel tank. Neither fuel tank was breached during the accident sequence and there was no evidence of fuel on the road or at the accident site. The inspector stated that there was no evidence of mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operations.