# NTSB LAX00LA284: Cessna 150J, N60764, Morgan Hill, CA, August 1, 2000 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 1, 2000, 12:53 local (19:53 UTC) - Place: Morgan Hill, CA - Coordinates: 37.170948, -121.650177 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.1709&lon=-121.6502&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 1 serious - Status: Completed, report July 17, 2001 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 49923 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX00LA284 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/49923/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00LA284 ## Probable cause A loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, which resulted from the pilot's inadequate preflight inspection and failure to verify the fuel supply onboard the airplane. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, descent - normal - fluid,fuel - exhaustion - fuel supply - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - preflight planning/preparation - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll - terrain condition - rough/uneven ## Analysis Near the end of a cross-country flight, the student pilot performed an off-airport emergency landing 3 miles from his intended destination following loss of engine power. During the landing, the airplane collided with ground obstructions. The pilot later acknowledged that he exhausted the aircraft's fuel supply. He said that a fueler was supposed to have filled the aircraft to capacity prior to his departure but did not. During his preflight inspection of the aircraft the pilot did not remove the fuel caps and visually check that the tanks were full. ## Factual narrative On August 1, 2000, at 1253 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 150J, N60764, lost engine power and collided with ground obstructions during an off-airport forced landing 3 miles northeast of Morgan Hill, California. The student pilot, the sole occupant, was seriously injured. The aircraft, operated by the pilot under 14 CFR Part 91, received substantial damage. The flight departed Fresno Yosemite International Airport, Fresno, California, at an unknown time, and was scheduled to terminate at South County Airport of Santa Clara, San Martin, California. Visual meteorological conditions existed for the instructional flight and no flight plan was filed. According to an inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) San Jose (California) Flight Standards District Office, the pilot acknowledged in an interview that he ran out of fuel. The accident location was about 3 miles from his intended destination. The pilot said that a fueler was supposed to have filled the aircraft to capacity before his departure but evidently did not. During his preflight inspection of the aircraft the pilot did not remove the fuel caps and visually check that the tanks were full. The Safety Board mailed an NTSB form 6120.1/2, Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report on August 1, 2000, to the pilot's FAA address of record. A follow-up letter and copy of the form were sent August 25, 2000. Neither form was returned. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N60764](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N60764-2001-06-05), registration cancelled 2001-06-05, S/N 15070559 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 150J - Registry model: [Cessna 150J](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-150j) (registry code 2071820) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 15070559 - Engines: Continental O-200 100 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Instructional, Part 91 - Registered owner: Anthony J. Chiminello - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility - Departed: FAT, FRESNO, CA - Destination: Q99, SAN MARTIN, CA ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 26; student; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; flight hours: 30 total ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: calm - Visibility: 9 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 9,000 ft broken - Temperature: 181 °F, dew point 145 °F - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg - Observed at: SJC, 24 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20000801012549A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000801012549A), Aug 1, 2000: Cessna 150J, Morgan Hill, CA, No damage. (-23)Mr. Chiminello stated that on a flight from fresno, California to san jose, California, he lost engine power at approximately 4500 feet MSL. He sais the… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.