- Date
- May 8, 1993, 12:36 local (16:36 UTC)
- Place
- Mims, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N63012Cessna 172P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 3, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930508012669A
- Case key
- 33266
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
Total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the failure of the pilot to lean the fuel/air mixture during cruise flight which increased the fuel consumption for the flight.
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 accident airplane and two other airplanes departed on the first leg of a long cross-country flight which was uneventful. Fuel was not purchased at the first stop by any of the three airplanes. The flight of three departed, and the other two airplanes landed at the planned airport for a fuel stop. The accident airplane experienced fuel exhaustion north of the destination airport & the pilot intentionally stalled the airplane into a clearing. The airplane landed left wing low which caused the left main and nose landing gears to collapse. The right fuel tank did not contain any fuel. The left fuel tank contained about 2 quarts of fuel. The gascolator contained about 1 ounce of fuel. The carburetor bowl did not contain any fuel. The plt did perform fuel consumption calculations for the flight but did not lean the fuel/air ratio during cruise flight. According to the pilot's operating handbook, the fuel flow during cruise flight is determined with the recommended lean mixture setting. An EGT indicator was installed & according to the pilot's operating handbook, is used as an aid for mixture leaning during cruise flight at 75 percent power or less.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N63012
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17275372
- Airframe hours
- 2,691
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D2J, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- American Flyers
- Registered owner
- Ate Of Florida, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · May 6, 1993 · 6 hours before
- Departed
- 4J6 · St. Mary'S, GA
- Destination
- TIX · Titusville, FL
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
- 20
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 84 total · 84 in this make and model · 9 as pilot in command · 84 in the last 90 days · 66 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 60° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- TIX, 9 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.
Other investigations on N63012 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.