The Beech 35-B33 pilot was flying to an airport that was about 33 nautical miles away from the departure airport. After takeoff he climbed to an altitude of 2,000 feet before descending to 1,500 feet.
About eight minutes into the flight the airplane’s engine “coughed and stopped running.”
In response, he switched the fuel selector to the other tank, turned on the boost pump and wingtip fuel tank pumps, and attempted to restart the engine, but was unsuccessful.
He then returned the fuel selector back to the original tank and made another attempt to restart the engine, but that effort was similarly unsuccessful.
The pilot then selected a field near Scottsmoor, Florida, and performed a forced landing. During the landing the airplane struck a tree, seriously injuring the pilot and substantially damaging the fuselage and left wing.
An FAA inspector examined the airplane at the accident site and reported that he found the fuel selector on the right tank position and that both the right main and wingtip fuel tanks were empty. He found a small amount of fuel in the left main fuel tank (later determined to be about two gallons) and no fuel in the left wingtip fuel tank. The inspector otherwise found no evidence of fuel leakage at the accident site.
A post recovery examination of the wreckage also found that there was no fuel in the fuel pump or fuel injector lines.
In a post-accident telephone interview, the pilot stated that the airplane “just didn’t have enough fuel.”
Probable Cause: The pilot’s inadequate preflight fuel planning, which resulted in fuel exhaustion.
NTSB Identification: 106894
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This March 2023 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
