- Date
- September 27, 1991, 19:55 local (Sep 28, 1991, 00:55 UTC)
- Place
- Lake Charles, LA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N34980Cessna 177B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed · report May 3, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910927043599A
- Case key
- 23403
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 perform a complete preflight inspection which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of inadequate fuel supply.
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
A private pilot and his son departed the airport for a short, scenic, local night flight. Approximately one hour after departure, the pilot reported on modified right base to runway 33 for a full stop landing. The engine failed and a forced landing was initiated by the pilot. The airplane struck a guide wire when the pilot tried to fly beneath and avoid power lines, and the aircraft impacted the ground. Both fuel cells were found to be empty. The pilot stated that four hours and fifty four minutes of flight time had elapsed since he aircraft was last serviced with fuel. He had estimated he had two hours of fuel remaining prior to departing on the hour long flight. He stated he did not usually check his fuel supply prior to departure.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N34980
- Reported as
- Cessna 177B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17702132
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1F6D, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Gaylin M. Allen
- Registered owner
- Gaylin M. Allen
- Airport
- LCH · Lake Charles Regional, runway 33, 6,500 × 150 ft, concrete
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
- 43
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 352 total · 92 in this make and model · 306 as pilot in command · 7 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 50° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.