- Date
- March 10, 1990, 17:15 local (23:15 UTC)
- Place
- Arlington, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N5193FCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 9, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900310003779A
- Case key
- 23113
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 NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
Instructor pilot's inadequate preflight procedures and failure to assure an adequate fuel supply for the proposed flight which led to the ensuing engine failure due to fuel exhaustion. Factors in the accident were the left fuel gauge's erroneous quantity readings and the soft/unsuitable terrain that led to a nose over during the subsequent emergency landing.
Analysis
The instructor and rated private pilot were conducting practice landings when the engine quit due to fuel exhaustion in the turn to left downwind. An off airport emergency landing was executed onto soft terrain and the airplane nosed over. No fuel was found on board the airplane however the left fuel quantity gauge indicated one quarter tank remaining and this discrepancy remained constant throughout the post-accident testing. The private pilot had briefed the instructor that he could not confirm visually the 1/2 tank indications on the fuel gauges during preflight. The instructor told the pilot that they would be airborne for an hour to an hour and a half and that he was confident the fuel supply was adequate.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5193F
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17273124
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Aerocade Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
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
- 30
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 938 total · 200 in this make and model · 782 as pilot in command · 218 in the last 90 days · 66 in the last 30 days · 7 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 183° at 13 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,600 ft broken
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- FTW, 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.