- Date
- July 9, 1989, 19:54 local (23:54 UTC)
- Place
- Akron, NY
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N3154TCessna 177A
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 2, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890709024519A
- Case key
- 36433
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
Improper planning/decision by the pilot, which resulted in fuel exhaustion, due to an inadequate supply of fuel. A factor related to the accident was: soft terrain in the emergency landing area.
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 was on a return flight to north buffalo suburban airport in lockport, new york after staying over night in oneonta, new york. The fuel selector was in the left tank position, when the engine started to run rough. The pilot switched to the right tank and contacted buffalo approach for vectors to nearest airport. The aircraft did not reach the airport. When it was landed in a cultivated field, the nose wheel dug into dirt and the aircraft nosed over. An exam revealed there was less than a cup of fuel remaining in the fuel system.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3154T
- Reported as
- Cessna 177A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17700454
- Airframe hours
- 3,081
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Howard R. Finch, Jr.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 27, 1988 · 78 hours before
- Departed
- N66 · Oneonta, NY
- Destination
- 0G0 · Lockport, NY
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
- 39
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 302 total · 99 in this make and model · 248 as pilot in command · 25 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 250° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
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 N3154T · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.