# NTSB DEN02LA040: Cessna TR182, N787PC, Kersey, CO, April 28, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: April 28, 2002, 16:30 local (22:30 UTC) - Place: Kersey, CO - Coordinates: 40.351665, -104.46833 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.3517&lon=-104.4683&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 3 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 1, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 54615 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=DEN02LA040 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/54615/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=54615 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN02LA040 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadequate planning decision which led to fuel exhaustion and subsequent loss of engine power. ## Analysis The pilot said that he flew direct from Longmont, Colorado to Ankeny, Iowa (533 nautical miles), and put 49.2 gallons of fuel in the airplane. On the return flight, he stopped at Hastings, Nebraska for food and a rest stop. He did not put additional fuel in the airplane during the rest stop. He departed for Longmont, Colorado, and experienced a power failure approximately 2.5 hours later; the pilot performed a forced landing to a highway. During the landing sequence, the pilot "extended the landing gear at the last second," and it failed to fully extend. The front door post bulk head was bent and the bottom of the airplane was badly damaged. The pilot said that the airplane held 92 gallons of fuel (88 gallons usable), but they customarily fueled it to the bottom of the fuel necks, which was approximately 65 gallons usable. A representative of the airplane's manufacturer said that the airplane burned approximately 14 to 15 gallons per hour in cruise flight, with 8 gallons being used for the two takeoffs and climbs to cruise altitude. The pilot also said the wind was strong from the west (maybe 30 knots), for the flight to Ankeny, and the return flight to Longmont. ## Factual narrative On April 28, 2002, at approximately 1630 mountain daylight time, a Cessna TR182, N787PC, was substantially damaged during a gear up forced landing on a highway near Kersey, Colorado. The instrument rated private pilot and his two passengers were not injured. Air West Flight Center, Inc., of Longmont, Colorado, was operating the airplane under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal cross-country flight that originated from Hastings, Nebraska, approximately 2.5 hours before the accident. The pilot had not filed a flight plan. The pilot said that he flew direct from Longmont, Colorado to Ankeny, Iowa (533 nautical miles), and put 49.2 gallons of fuel in the airplane. On the return flight, he stopped at Hastings, Nebraska for food and a rest stop. He did not put additional fuel in the airplane during the rest stop. He departed for Longmont, Colorado, and experienced a power failure approximately 2.5 hours later; the pilot performed a forced landing to a highway. During the landing sequence, the pilot "extended the landing gear at the last second," and it failed to fully extend. The front door post bulk head was bent and the bottom of the airplane was badly damaged. The pilot said that the airplane held 92 gallons of fuel (88 gallons usable), but they customarily fueled it to the bottom of the fuel necks, which was approximately 65 gallons usable. A representative of the airplane's manufacturer said that the airplane burned approximately 14 to 15 gallons per hour in cruise flight, with 8 gallons being used for the two takeoffs and climbs to cruise altitude. The pilot also said the wind was strong from the west (maybe 30 knots), for the flight to Ankeny, and the return flight to Longmont. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, cruise - planning/decision - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - fluid,fuel - exhaustion (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - Wheels up landing, emergency descent/landing - airport facilities,runway/landing area condition - roadway/highway ## Aircraft - Registration: [N787PC](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N787PC), registered now, S/N R18200867, built 1979 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna TR182 - Registry model: [Cessna TR182](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-tr182) (registry code 2072735) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-540 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-540-series) (registry code 41532, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: R18200867 - Engines: Lycoming O-540-J3C5D 235 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Air West Flight Center Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: HSI, Hastings, NE - Destination: 2V2, Longmont, CO - Flight plan: Unknown ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 21; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1; last flight review January 29, 2001; seat: left; flight hours: 230 total, 21 in this make and model, 178 as pilot in command, 18 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 30 days, 4 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 300° at 18 knots, gusting 26 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 72 °F, dew point 27 °F - Altimeter: 29.95 inHg - Observed at: GXY, 12 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20020428010399A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020428010399A), Apr 28, 2002: Cessna TR182, Kersey, CO, No damage. (-23) The pilot made an emergency landing on a highway near Kersey, CO, due to fuel exhaustion. The aircraft landed gear partially extended and received… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 10, 2002, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=54615. 355 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 325 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40432676&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - Supplement S (item 2, .PDF, 30 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40170634&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Supplement%20S-Master.PDF 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.