- Date
- March 14, 2005, 13:35 local (20:35 UTC)
- Place
- Tucson, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N226PSSukhoi SU-26
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 31, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20050314010119A
- Case key
- 61154
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 inadequate in-flight planning and fuel consumption calculations, which resulted in fuel exhaustion.
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 airplane nosed over during a forced landing in a field following a loss of engine power. The airplane was equipped with one fuel tank, which held approximately 15.8 gallons of fuel, or about 30 minutes duration. While the pilot was performing aerobatic maneuvers, the engine lost power and he force landed the airplane in a field. Emergency response personnel did not see or smell fuel at the accident scene. Approximately 1 quart of fuel was drained from the fuel tank. The engine was successfully test-run with no operational anomalies noted.
Factual narrative
On March 14, 2005, about 1335 mountain standard time, a Sukhoi SU-26 experimental aerobatic airplane, N226PS, nosed over during a forced landing following a loss of engine power near Marana Regional Airport, Tucson, Arizona. The private pilot, who was also the registered owner of the airplane, was operating it under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The pilot was the sole occupant and was not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot reported departing the Marana Regional Airport about 1315 for the local, personal, aerobatic flight.
According to the pilot, he was performing aerobatic maneuvers when the loss of engine power occurred. The engine did not sputter or make any unusual noises. He turned towards the airport, but ended up landing the airplane short of the runway in a field; the airplane came to rest inverted. The pilot departed with a full fuel quantity of 15.8 gallons.
Emergency responders stated that there was no fuel spill at the accident site and that the odor of fuel was not present. Recovery personnel drained about 1 quart of fuel from the fuel tank.
According to the airport manager, the airplane was topped off with 10.1 gallons of fuel at 1012, the morning of the accident. Airport personnel did not witness the airplane depart.
The engine was test-run on April 8 in the presence of the Federal Aviation Administration accident coordinator. The installed propeller sustained damage during the accident sequence so a new propeller was installed. Using the airplane's fuel system, the engine was run to 1,200 rpm successfully. No operational anomalies were noted that would have precluded the engine from operating normally.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N226PS
- Reported as
- Sukhoi SU-26
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 06-10
- Airframe hours
- 443.3
- Engine
- Vedeneyez M-14, 360 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Shelby Futch
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 7, 2004 · 56 hours before
- Departed
- AVQ · Tucson, AZ
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
- 64
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- September 1, 2003
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 3,000 total · 100 in this make and model · 3,000 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 260° at 18 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.77 inHg
- Observed at
- KTUS, 23 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.