- Date
- November 4, 2021, 15:00 local (19:00 UTC)
- Place
- Ringwood, NJ · Wooded area
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N423LLCessna 182P
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Fuel exhaustion
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA FSDO, FAA/FSDO
- Case key
- 104228
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
A loss of engine power in flight due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot’s failure to secure the left wing’s fuel cap.
Findings · 2
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 pilot reported that he visually checked both fuel tanks prior to takeoff and noted he had 40 gallons of usable fuel for the flight. About an hour into the flight, the engine lost all power and he conducted an off-field emergency landing. During the landing, the airplane collided with a tree and damaged the left wing. After the emergency landing, while securing the airplane, the pilot discovered fuel streaks on the left horizontal stabilizer. He also discovered that the left tank fuel cap was missing. Although he said he thought he replaced the fuel cap after checking the fuel, he contacted the departure airport, and the fuel cap was located on the ramp. The pilot did not report any other mechanical anomalies. An examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed structural damage to the left, outboard wing. The fuel tank was not breached, and the left fuel tank fuel cap was missing. The left and right fuel tanks were checked for fuel and both tanks were found empty. The fuel selector was discovered in the both position. The forward sump was drained, and a slight amount of fuel drained from the sump.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N423LL
- Reported as
- Cessna 182P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18264071
- Built
- 1975
- Airframe hours
- 1,885
- Engine
- Continental O-470, 275 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning · Part 91
- Registered owner
- 79bravo Leasing LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 18, 2021 · 12 hours before
- Departed
- 7B9 · Ellington, CT
- Destination
- N85 · Pittstown, NJ
- Equipment
- ADS-B
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
- 42
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- February 3, 2020
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 983 total · 95 in this make and model · 630 as pilot in command · 68 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 52 °F, dew point 21 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.29 inHg
- Observed at
- KCDW, 14 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KCDW 041853Z VRB03KT 10SM CLR 11/M06 A3029 RMK AO2 SLP264 T01061056=
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 7, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 7.2 MB in all.