# NTSB LAX99LA183: Cessna 150M, N66487, Lucerne Valley, CA, May 12, 1999 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 12, 1999, 14:20 local (21:20 UTC) - Place: Lucerne Valley, CA - Coordinates: 34.56908, -117.149467 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.5691&lon=-117.1495&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report November 30, 2000 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 46323 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX99LA183 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/46323/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX99LA183 ## Probable cause the pilot's failure to refuel the airplane and improper fuel consumption calculations. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, cruise - normal - terrain condition - none suitable - refueling - not performed, pilot in command (cause) - fuel consumption calculations - improper, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis The private pilot rented the airplane for a personal cross-country flight. At his first stop he did not refuel. He overflew his intended second and refueling stop by 23 miles. Subsequently, he ran out of fuel and attempted a landing on a dirt road. The airplane collided with brush and rolled inverted. The airplane had operated 4.4 hours since last refueling. The pilot had received a 1.1-hour checkout by the operator the day before the accident in the same airplane. ## Factual narrative On May 12, 1999, about 1420 hours Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 150M, N66487, encountered soft terrain and nosed over during a forced landing near Lucerne Valley, California, after experiencing a total loss of engine power. The aircraft, operated by Kern Charter Service of Bakersfield, California, and rented by the pilot, was substantially damaged. The private pilot, the sole occupant, received minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal cross-country flight operating under 14 CFR Part 91 of the Federal Aviation Regulations. No flight plan was filed. The flight originated from Bakersfield, California, at 0905, made an en route stop at Ramona, California, and was on the return leg to Bakersfield when the accident occurred. The pilot landed at Ramona, but did not refuel. He planned on refueling at Redlands, California. The accident site is located about 23 miles north, or past, Redlands, and is separated from the accident site by high mountains. According to the pilot's written statement, "the airplane ran out of gas, so I glided the plane over the desert and tried to land it on a dirt road." According to a recording hour meter in the aircraft and an aircraft checkout sheet, the aircraft had operated about 4.4 hours since last refueling. The pilot had received a 1.1-hour checkout by the operator in the same airplane the day before the accident. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N66487](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N66487-2002-05-20), registration cancelled 2002-05-20, S/N 15076079, built 1974 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 150M - Registry model: [Cessna 150M](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-150m) (registry code 2071830) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental 0-200 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-200-series) (registry code 17020, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 15076079 - Airframe hours: 3924 - Engines: Continental O-200-A 100 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Kern Charter Service - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, April 23, 1999, 45 hours before - Departed: L45, BAKERSFIELD, CA - Destination: L39, RAMONA, CA ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 19; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 156 total, 5 in this make and model, 77 as pilot in command, 18 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 260° at 14 knots - Visibility: 35 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 95 °F, dew point 41 °F - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg - Observed at: DAG, 37 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 19990512005079A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990512005079A), May 12, 1999: Cessna 150M, Lucerne Valley, CA, Substantial damage. Acft engine quit, and the acft crashed in Lucerne Valley, CA. (From .19) on may 12, 1999, about 1420 hours pacific daylight time, a Cessna 150M, N66487,… 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.