- Date
- July 29, 1990, 21:30 local (Jul 30, 1990, 02:30 UTC)
- Place
- Yutan, NE
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N252BJForbing Longeze
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report March 17, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900729028939A
- Case key
- 14728
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
Fuel exhaustion due to an inadequate supply of fuel and the pilot's lack of familiarity with this home-built aircraft. Factors related to the accident were: darkness and obstructions (vehicle & road sign) in the emergency landing area.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The plt was on a night, cross-country flight in a borrowed, homebuilt longeze. About 20 mi from his destination, the eng lost power. An emergency lndg was made on a highway, which resulted in a collision with a motor vehicle & a road sign before coming to rest in a ditch. A post accident investigation revealed the acft was empty of usable fuel. An eng run-up revealed no malfunction. The plt rprtd that before the eng lost power, he had moved the fuel selector to the rgt tank, which (he thought) had about 7 gal remaining. He estimated the acft had flown only about 20 mi further, when the eng lost power. This longeze was equipped with retractable tricyle gear. The main gear retracted into the rear area of the fuel tanks. This feature reduced the total fuel capacity of the acft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N252BJ
- Reported as
- Forbing Longeze
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 222
- Airframe hours
- 396
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-E2D, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Irving H. Forbing
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 25, 1990 · 12 hours before
- Departed
- KS01 · Hoxie, KS
- Destination
- OMA · Omaha, NE
- Airport
- 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
- 35
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 7,000 total · 25 in this make and model · 5,000 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 12 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 10° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 68 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- OMA, 20 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.