- Date
- December 27, 1992, 14:44 local (20:44 UTC)
- Place
- Montgomery, AL
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N336SXBunn, Richard B. Swearingen SX300
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921227051639A
- Case key
- 33208
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 in command's decision to operate the aircraft with known fuel leaks and his failure to monitor fuel quantity en route which resulted in loss of engine power due to 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 pilot filled the fuel tanks the day before the accident flight and flew an unknown length of time back to his home airport. The pilot then flew for 3.0 hours according to the aircraft's hobbs meter on the day of the accident, prior to engine failure. Just before the engine failure the pilot reported to ATC a low fuel state, and as the engine was failing the pilot reported 'I am running out of fuel.' The rescue personnel who first arrived at the scene reported there was no fuel leakage, fuel odor, or fuel in the aircraft's fuel tanks. Examination of the aircraft by FAA inspectors revealed the right and left wings had visible fuel leaks and fresh sealant was visible in attempts to stop the leaks. According to the aircraft kit manufacturer the aircraft has a normal endurance of about 4 hours.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N336SX
- Reported as
- Bunn, Richard B. Swearingen SX300 (SWEARINGEN)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 36
- Airframe hours
- 183
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-L1C5, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bunn, Richard B.
- Registered owner
- Bunn, Richard B.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 5, 1992 · 88 hours before
- Departed
- FD38 · West Palm Beach, FL
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 65
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,200 total · 180 in this make and model · 4,100 as pilot in command · 70 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MGM, 4 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.