- Date
- August 17, 1998, 12:05 local (19:05 UTC)
- Place
- Chandler, AZ
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N5233DCessna 172N
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 16, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980817021099A
- Case key
- 43732
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
Fuel exhaustion due to the pilot's inadequate preflight planning and in-flight monitoring of the aircraft's fuel consumption.
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 pilot told the tower that she was running out of fuel. She reported that the aircraft shook and started losing altitude, then seemed to start back up before quitting completely. The pilot landed in the desert terrain and the nose gear and left main landing gear were ripped off. The aircraft nosed over and came to rest inverted. An FAA inspector examined the airplane and reported that the fuel lines and both fuel tanks were intact and there was no fuel visible in either tank. He further stated that he conducted an engine run after adding approximately 1 gallon of fuel and making no other adjustments. The engine started on the first try and ran smoothly for several minutes with no abnormal sounds or indications noted. On the flight from Tucson to Las Vegas, 40.7 gallons of fuel were added to the aircraft tanks following landing at North Las Vegas. The fuel system holds 43 total gallons, of which 40.7 are usable.
Factual narrative
On August 17, 1998, at 1205 hours mountain standard time, a Cessna 172N, N5233D, lost power and landed in the desert terrain approximately 6 miles southwest of Chandler, Arizona. The aircraft sustained substantial damage. The private pilot and two passengers, the sole occupants, were not injured. The personal flight originated at the North Las Vegas, Nevada, airport, at 0736, and was en route to the Chandler Municipal Airport in Chandler, Arizona, at the time of the accident. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the route of flight. A VFR flight plan was on file but was not activated.
The pilot told the Chandler tower that she was running out of fuel. She reported that the aircraft shook and started losing altitude, then seemed to start back up before quitting completely. The tower gave the pilot headings to the Stellar Airpark in Chandler, but the pilot reported that she did not have enough altitude to make the field. The aircraft landed in the desert terrain and the nose gear and left main landing gear were ripped off. The aircraft nosed over and came to rest inverted.
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector from the Scottsdale, Arizona, Flight Standards District Office responded to the accident site and reported that both fuel tanks were intact and there was no fuel visible in either tank. The inspector further stated that according to the Fixed-Base Operator (FBO) in Las Vegas where the pilot parked overnight, the pilot purchased 40.7 gallons of fuel after landing. According to the Cessna Information Manual, the accident aircraft holds 43 total gallons of fuel, with 40 useable gallons.
The FAA inspector conducted an engine run-up on September 29, 1998. After adding approximately 1 gallon of fuel, the engine started on the first attempt and ran smoothly for several minutes with no discrepancies or abnormal sounds noted.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5233D
- Reported as
- Cessna 172N
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17272462
- Airframe hours
- 5,426
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-H2AD, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Tucson Aeroservice Center Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 27, 1998 · 88 hours before
- Departed
- VGT · North Las Vegas, NV
- Destination
- E14 · 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
- 33
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 73 total · 15 in this make and model · 15 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 99 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PHX, 15 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.