- Date
- July 9, 2006, 08:30 local (13:30 UTC)
- Place
- Eldorado, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N6697UMooney M20C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 31, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- San Antonio, Texas
- FAA report
- 20060709014149A
- Case key
- 64099
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 failure to switch fuel tanks during cruise flight, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel starvation. A contributing factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.
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 248-hour private pilot was on a 861-nautical mile cross-country flight in a single-engine airplane, when the engine lost power while in cruise flight at an altitude of 8,500 feet msl. Due to a low cloud cover, the pilot was unable to visually locate the nearest airport, however, he was able to locate a nearby road and he turned towards the road for a possible forced landing. As the pilot proceeded toward the road, he noticed an airport was located off to his left and behind him, so he elected to turn the airplane toward the airport. Due to the strong headwind, the pilot quickly realized that he would not be able to reach the airport. The pilot then made a right hand turn and landed in a field. Prior to touching down, the airplane's left wing collided with a tree and the landing gear collided with a fence before the airplane came to a complete stop. The pilot reported that he did not switch the fuel tanks in flight "which was the result of the engine failing." The pilot added that the fuel gauges were inaccurate and the fuel consumption had to be monitored via a timer. The pilot stated that approximately 5 to 10 minutes prior to the loss of engine power, he told himself that he needed to switch the fuel tanks "soon." In addition, the pilot said that he "went through all the procedures except switching tanks" in an attempt to troubleshoot the power loss.
Factual narrative
The 248-hour private pilot was on a 861-nautical mile cross-country flight in a single-engine airplane, when the engine lost power while in cruise flight at an altitude of 8,500 feet msl. Due to a low cloud cover, the pilot was unable to visually locate the nearest airport, however, he was able to locate a nearby road and he turned towards the road for a possible forced landing. As the pilot proceeded toward the road, he noticed an airport was located off to his left and behind him, so he elected to turn the airplane toward the airport. Due to the strong headwind, the pilot quickly realized that he would not be able to reach the airport. The pilot then made a right hand turn and landed in a field. Prior to touching down, the airplane's left wing collided with a tree and the landing gear collided with a fence before the airplane came to a complete stop. The pilot reported that he did not switch the fuel tanks in flight "which was the result of the engine failing." The pilot added that the fuel gauges were inaccurate and the fuel consumption had to be monitored via a timer. The pilot stated that approximately 5 to 10 minutes prior to the loss of engine power, he told himself that he needed to switch the fuel tanks "soon." In addition, the pilot said that he "went through all the procedures except switching tanks" in an attempt to troubleshoot the power loss.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6697U
- Reported as
- Mooney M20C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2424
- Airframe hours
- 3,500
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Matt Petz
- Registered owner
- Matt Petz
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 1, 2006
- Departed
- 66R · Columbus, TX
- Destination
- PEQ · Pecos, TX
- Airport
- 27R · Eldorado Airport
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
- 28
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2
- Last flight review
- August 1, 2004
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 248 total · 30 in this make and model · 205 as pilot in command · 4 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.06 inHg
- Observed at
- SOA, 17 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.