Bedford, IN, USA
N8733V
BELLANCA 7GCAA
The pilot departed on a 2-hour cross-country flight with the airplane's fuel tanks full. While at his destination airport, the pilot, who was a physician, received word that a patient was in critical condition and that he needed to return as soon as possible. The pilot stated that the fuel gauges indicated over half full; he departed on the return flight without refueling the airplane. During the return flight, the pilot had to divert around weather and noticed that the fuel gauges were registering considerably less than previously noted. He altered course to a nearby airport. Shortly thereafter, the engine sputtered and lost power due to fuel exhaustion. The pilot made a forced landing in a rough field, and the airplane nosed over.
On July 8, 012, about 1300 eastern daylight time, a Bellanca 7GCAA, N8733V, impacted terrain one mile short of runway 06 at the Virgil I. Grissom Municipal Airport (KBFR), Bedford, Indiana. The pilot received minor injuries and his passenger was seriously injuried. The airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot of Salem, Indiana, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The local flight originated from Logan County Airport (KAAA), Lincoln, Indiana, about 1139. According the pilot's accident report, the fuel tanks were full (21 gallons when he departed Salem Municipal Airport (KI83), Salem, Indiana, at 0900. He arrived at KAAA about 1110. There was no attendant at the airport and the airplane was not refueled. The pilot, a physician, received a telephone call from his hospital regarding one of his patients who was in critical condition, and he needed to return to Salem as soon as possible. During the preflight, the fuel gauges indicated over half-full tanks, but the pilot said he did not dip-stick the tanks. The pilot flight planned a fuel consumption rate of 8.5 gallons per hour. Because of rain showers in the Lincoln area, the pilot departed on a direct flight to Salem. When the airplane was 19 miles south of Bloomington, Indiana, or 17 miles from KBFR, the pilot noticed the fuel gauges were registering considerably less than previously noted. The pilot steered the airplane towards KBFR and when it was about 2 miles west of the airport, the engine sputtered and lost power shortly thereafter. The pilot made a forced landing on rough terrain and the airplane nosed over. The pilot said he miscalculated the fuel consumption rate; he thought he would have 2.5 gallons remaining when he landed at KI83. He also said he miscalculated the winds aloft and the effects of having to divert around weather.
The pilot's improper fuel management, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s self-induced pressure to return home.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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