- Date
- August 9, 1989, 20:05 local (Aug 10, 1989, 01:05 UTC)
- Place
- Comfort, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N5703BCessna 182
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890809028309A
- Case key
- 22903
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 fuel exhaustion induced power loss which resulted from the fuel pilot's failure to accurately determine the amount of fuel available for the flight.
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 flight departed from a private airport with no fuel services available. Purpose of flight was a civil air patrol local practice session. Prior to departure, the PIC estimated that approximately two hours of fuel was available by calculating the time flown since last fueling and dip-sticking the tanks. Both pilots stated that the fuel gauge was unreliable and that they did not fly to another airport for fuel because it would have necessitated a night return. The engine lost power and the second pilot executed a forced landing while the PIC attempted emergency procedures. Touchdown occurred in a terraced field. The FAA coordinator reported less than two gallons of fuel remaining at the scene.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5703B
- Reported as
- Cessna 182
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 33730
- Airframe hours
- 3,677
- Engine
- Continental O-470-L, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Blank, Gloria
- Registered owner
- Gloria J Blank
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 3, 1989 · 4 hours before
- Departed
- TA66 · Pipe Creek, TX
- 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
- 54
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 330 total · 162 in this make and model · 224 as pilot in command · 5 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.