Don't let this be you..... lessons learned

My students know I am always harping on making sure you know how much fuel is actually in the tanks - don't trust the fuel gauges!  Fuel starvation is a major cause of preventable accidents.  If you are not positive of the fuel amount by full fuel upon visual inspection, calculation, or a calibrated dip stick;  Top it off!




Synopses I
An airplane collided with a fence during a forced landing following a loss of engine power. The pilot reported that he flew on the left fuel tank for start-up, taxi, and takeoff. After reaching his cruise altitude of 8,500 feet, he switched to the right fuel tank approximately 45 minutes into the flight. When the right fuel gauge indicated zero, the pilot switched back to the left fuel tank while making stair-step descents to his final destination. About four miles north of the accident location and 18 miles south of his destination, the engine began sputtering and he switched the fuel selector to the right tank and turned on the electric fuel pump. The engine started to run normally, but the fuel indicator on the left tank read over five gallons and the right tank indicated zero gallons. He immediately reversed course toward an airport he had just over flown and planned to land on runway 11. Due to a departing airplane on runway 29, the pilot maneuvered to land on runway 29 and entered the downwind leg of the traffic pattern. As he entered downwind, the engine sputtered again and then lost power. The pilot attempted to land on runway 29 and made s-turns to dissipate the excessive altitude in order to make the runway. Prior to touching down, the pilot extended two notches of flaps. Upon touchdown, he applied the brakes but the airplane overran the runway, went through a fence, and came to rest on a golf course. The airport manager immediately responded to the accident site and found that there was no fuel in the fuel tanks or on the ground. About one ounce of clean fuel was found in the gascolator. Using the fuel flow for 75 percent best power from the performance charts in the aircraft flight manual for the trip elapsed time, including the allowances for takeoff and climb fuel burn, yielded a total fuel consumption of 49.25 gallons. The airplane’s usable fuel was 48 gallons.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows: a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
Synopses II
In a written statement, a pilot stated that he encountered engine failure at 3,000 feet mean sea level. “An emergency landing was attempted on a street. Upon landing, I struck a telephone pole with the left wing.”
Federal Aviation Administration inspectors examined the airplane at the accident site. The airplane was found resting upright, backed up against some trees, in the hollow of a vacant lot, in a residential neighborhood located 1.6 miles
east of the airport. Preceding the airplane, a power pole was found pushed over. There was metal skin from the airplane’s left wing suspended in a power line coming off of the pole.
The airplane’s left wing leading edge was torn out at mid-span. The airplane’s right wing tip was broken off. The nose wheel was broken aft. The engine mounts and firewall were bent up and aft. The airplane’s wing and fuselage skins showed heavy buckling and bending. The propeller showed no damage. Examination of the airplane’s two main fuel tanks, which were found intact, revealed no fuel in either tank. Approximately one pint of fuel was recovered from the accumulator tank and lines to the engine. Flight control continuity was confirmed. Examination of the engine, engine controls and other airplane systems revealed no anomalies.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows: The pilot’s improper in-flight planning and decisions which led to fuel exhaustion. A factor relating to this accident was the telephone pole.

MIA Sunrise

West Palm, Stuart

http://picasaweb.google.com/pastagias/2010_03_04?authkey=Gv1sRgCLDgqa2ahY7AzQE&feat=directlink