Hopewell, AL, USA
N16078
CESSNA 150L
The pilot reported that, before departure, she checked the fuel gauges and estimated that the fuel tanks were just under 1/2 full and contained no less than 10 gallons of fuel. (The total fuel capacity was 26 gallons, of which 3.5 gallons were unusable.) She was unable to measure the fuel because she had dropped the measuring stick into the fuel tank. The flight departed, and, about 1 hour 15 minutes after departure and about 10 miles from the destination airport, the engine lost total power. The pilot unsuccessfully tried to restart the engine and subsequently performed a forced landing to a field. No anomalies were found with the engine that would have precluded normal operation. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel tanks were not breached and that they contained a total of 1/2 gallon of fuel. The pilot reported that, before departing the airport, she checked the weather, which indicated that wind aloft conditions were a left quartering headwind at 6 knots. However, the wind aloft report from a station about 10 nautical miles from the accident location indicated that the wind aloft conditions ranged from a quartering headwind of 10 to 35 knots depending on the altitude of flight, which increased the duration of the flight. The pilot stated that the engine consumed about 4.4 to 5.6 gallons of fuel per hour; however, a review of the airplane owner's manual performance charts revealed that the engine could consume up to 7 gallons of fuel per hour. Because of the headwind, the flight was 1 hour 15 minutes, which would have required up to 8.75 gallons of fuel; however, the pilot took off with about 6.5 to 8.5 gallons of usable fuel. Thus, it is likely that the airplane did not have enough fuel to reach the destination airport, and the engine lost total power as a result of fuel exhaustion.
On November 25, 2013, about 1115 central standard time, a Cessna 150L, N16078, was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a total loss of engine power near Hopewell, Alabama. The private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which originated from Courtland Airport (9A4), Courtland, Alabama, around 1000. The flight was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91, with the intended destination of Bessemer Airport (EKY), Bessemer, Alabama. According to the pilot, the airplane was unable to be refueled due to the fact that the airport had sold all of the 100LL aviation fuel. Prior to departure, she attempted to determine the amount of fuel in the fuel tanks utilizing a measure stick; but the measuring stick fell into the fuel tank. She checked the fuel gauges inside the airplane, which indicated "just under half a tank." She estimated that the airplane contained about 10 gallons of fuel prior to takeoff. The flight departed and about 10 miles from the destination the engine began to "run rough." She applied carburetor heat, verified the mixture was in the rich position, and the engine began to "run better." Soon after, the engine lost total power, the pilot was unable to restart the engine, and she performed an off-airport, forced landing to a nearby field. During the accident sequence, the wings impacted a telephone pole and a small tree. The left wing spar was substantially damaged. A postaccident examination of the engine, by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, revealed that compression was confirmed on all cylinders. All spark plugs were removed and no anomalies were noted. The carburetor heat was operated and no anomalies were noted. The fuel line from the firewall to the carburetor was removed and a few drops of liquid similar in smell and color to 100LL aviation fuel were recovered. The fuel tanks were not breached, drained, and contained a total amount of about a half-gallon of fuel. The pilot reported that she checked the weather prior to departing the departure airport and it indicated that the forecasted winds and temperature aloft conditions were 120 degrees true at 6 knots. However, when she was flying to the destination airport, she stated that the wind aloft conditions were "160 degrees at 30 knots," which would have been "almost a direct headwind." The wind aloft report from Alabaster, Alabama, which was about 10 nautical miles from the accident location, around the time of the accident indicated that at 5,000 feet above ground level (agl), the wind was 175 degrees true at 10 knots, and at 2,000 agl, the wind was 130 degrees true at 35 knots. The pilot reported that the route of flight was from 9A4 to EKY, which was about 84 nautical miles, on a true course of 165 degrees. According to the Cessna 150L owner's manual, the fuel tanks had a total capacity of 26 gallons of fuel, however 3.5 gallons were considered unusable. According to section 6 "Operational Data" of the owner's manual, at an altitude of 2,500 feet, the airplane's engine would have consumed 7.0 gallons of fuel per hour at full power with a properly leaned mixture. At an altitude of 5,000 feet, the airplane's engine would have consumed 6.4 gallons of fuel per hour at full power with a properly leaned mixture. According to the owner's manual, the proper leaning procedure during cruise was to "lean to maximum RPM." In addition, a note at the bottom of the "Cruise Performance" chart stated that "the above calculations of endurance in hours and range in miles, no allowances were made for take-off or reverse." On the NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report, Form 6120.1, under the recommendation section, the pilot stated that "not being able to top off my tanks in the Courtland, AL (9A4) it was probably unwise for me to have taken off that morning based on calculations."
A total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, which resulted from the pilot’s inadequate preflight inspection and preflight and inflight fuel planning that did not account for increased headwind.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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