Barnes Westfield Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Leeds, Massachusetts 01053
Wednesday, December 4, 2002 17:15 EDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The student pilot performed the preflight inspection, by the checklist, and under the supervision of the flight instructor, for the dual instructional flight. He checked the fuel gauges and looked in the tanks, but he did not "stick" the tanks and confirm the exact fuel quantity. He estimated that each tank was about "three-quarters" full. Fuel samples drained from the wings and the fuel strainer were absent of water and debris. The student pilot performed the engine start, run-up procedures, and before-takeoff checks, and all indications were normal. He then flew out to the local training area and performed steep turns. The flight instructor noted some minor deficiencies in the student's technique, and demonstrated the use of pitch and power to smooth the maneuver. They then transitioned to minimum-controllable-airspeed maneuvers, then to power-off stalls. During a stall recovery, the flight instructor noticed a reduction in engine power. He adjusted the throttle, mixture, and carburetor heat controls but the engine stopped producing power, and the propeller stopped completely. During the subsequent descent, the flight instructor contacted air traffic control, declared an emergency, and selected a field for the night forced landing. The airplane struck trees prior to the field, descended to the ground, nosed over, and came to rest inverted. There was only a faint odor of fuel and no evidence of fuel spillage at the scene. There was also no evidence of fuel in either fuel tank. Examination of the engine revealed no anomalies.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The flight instructor's failure to ensure adequate fuel onboard, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a total loss of engine power.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 12/4/2002
Event Day of the Week Wednesday
Time of Event 1715
Event Time Zone Eastern Daylight Time
Event City Leeds
Event State MASSACHUSETTS
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 01053
Event Date Year 2002
Event Date Month 12
MidAir Collision Indicator --
On Ground Collision occurred ? --
Event Location Latitude 422100N
Event Location Longitude 0724200W
Event Location Airport Barnes Westfield
Event Location Nearest Airport ID BAF
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles 10
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 200
Weather Briefing Completeness Unknown
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1653 Eastern Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) --
Weather Observation Facility ID BAF
Elevation of weather observation facility --
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) --
Time Zone of the weather observation EDT
Lighting Conditions Dusk
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 25
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 9
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 340
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 6
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 30.36
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report BAF 04/2153 30.36 25 9 50 340 6 10
Event Highest Injury Minor
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor 2
Injury Total None --
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All 2
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 13833
NTSB Notification Source NERCC
NTSB Notification Date Dec 4 2002 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 1910
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information DMS
Date of most recent change to record Aug 26 2003 8:17AM
User who most recently changed record NTSB\JOHB
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Windsor Locks, CT

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N2706L
NTSB Number IAD03LA022
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? No
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Cessna
Aircraft Model 172H
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 172-55906
Certified Max Gross Weight 2300
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 4
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Jun 1 2002 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 75
Airframe Hours 6165
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated Unknown
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name Steven Hayden
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City Ludlow
Aircraft Owner State MA
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 01056
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name --
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City --
Operator State --
Operator Country --
Operator Zip code --
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? --
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Instructional
Second Pilot on Board Yes
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code BAF
Departure City WESTFIELD
Departure State MA
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1630
Departure Time Zone EDT
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code --
Destination City --
Destination State --
Destination Country --
Specific Phase of Flight Maneuvering
Report sent to ICAO? No
Evacuation occurred No
Date of most recent change to record Mar 12 2003 1:30PM
User who most recently changed record JOHB
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location --
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --