Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Rialto Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Rialto, California 92376
Monday, December 29, 2003 23:19 PST
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
The airplane collided with ground obstacles following a loss of engine power during a VFR go-around. During a 200-mile instrument cross-country flight, the pilot attempted to lean the mixture while climbing to an altitude of 10,000 feet; however, the engine would sputter and cough. The pilot chose to position the mixture in the "FULL RICH" position. Unable to climb to the appropriate altitude, the pilot canceled his IFR flight plan and continued VFR with flight following. About halfway through the flight, the right wing fuel gage was indicating empty, and though concerned about the apparent abnormal fuel consumption, the pilot decided to continue to his original destination. The fuel selector was then switched to the left fuel tank. At this time, the airplane was flying over several airports with maintenance and fueling facilities. Approaching the destination, the left fuel tank gage was indicating a low quantity and the pilot declared an emergency. The pilot attempted to land at a nearby airport but the airplane was too high and fast for landing. The engine lost power during a go-around attempt. Post accident examination did not reveal any fuel staining on the airplane. The vent lines and ports were unobstructed and the fuel tank filler cap seals were in good condition. Approximately 3 gallons of fuel were drained from the left tank; approximately 10.5 gallons were drained from the right fuel tank. According to the POH for the airplane, the total fuel system capacity is 65 gallons, with 5 gallons (2.5 for each tank) unusable. The fuel selector has three positions, OFF, LEFT, and RIGHT. The fuel selector was in the "LEFT" position at the accident site. Impact damage precluded functional testing of the engine and the fuel metering unit. Fueling records established that the airplane was filled to capacity before flight.
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
The pilot's inadequate in-flight planning/decision by his fuel mismanagement and his delay in initiating remedial action which resulted in fuel exhaustion and the loss of engine power.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 12/29/2003 |
| Event Day of the Week | Monday |
| Time of Event | 2319 |
| Event Time Zone | Pacific Standard Time |
| Event City | Rialto |
| Event State | CALIFORNIA |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 92376 |
| Event Date Year | 2003 |
| Event Date Month | 12 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | 340754N |
| Event Location Longitude | 1172409W |
| Event Location Airport | Rialto |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | L67 |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | 0.25 |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | 240 |
| Airport Elevation | 1455 |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Full |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 2353 Pacific Standard Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 210 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | CNO |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 652 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 17 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | PST |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 10000 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | -- |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Clear |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | Broken |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | -- |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | -- |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 6 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | 8 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | 6 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 70 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Wind direction could be determined |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 4 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | -- |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Gusting |
| Wind Gust (knots) | 0 |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 29.91 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | -- |
| Intensity of Precipitation | -- |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| 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) | 17453 |
| NTSB Notification Source | FAA |
| NTSB Notification Date | Dec 29 2003 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 2350 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | DMS |
| Date of most recent change to record | Mar 30 2005 6:20AM |
| User who most recently changed record | NTSB\JOHB |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | WP-FSDO-Riverside, California |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N6539X |
| NTSB Number | LAX04LA083 |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | -- |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Part 91: General Aviation |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | IFR |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | Yes |
| Damage | Substantial |
| Aircraft Fire | None |
| Aircraft Explosion | None |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | Cessna |
| Aircraft Model | 210 |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | -- |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 57539 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 2900 |
| 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 | Retractable |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | May 21 2003 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | -- |
| Airframe Hours | -- |
| ELT Installed | Yes |
| ELT Activated | No |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | No |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | Britronix, Inc. |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | On File |
| Aircraft Owner City | Laguna Nigel |
| Aircraft Owner State | CA |
| Aircraft Owner Country | USA |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 92677 |
| Operator is an individual? | No |
| Operator Name | Brian Clemens |
| Operator Same as Owner? | No |
| 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) | Personal |
| Second Pilot on Board | No |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No |
| Departure Airport Code | VGT |
| Departure City | Las Vegas |
| Departure State | NV |
| Departure Country | USA |
| Departure Time | 2250 |
| Departure Time Zone | PST |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | -- |
| Destination Airport Code | CNO |
| Destination City | Chino |
| Destination State | CA |
| Destination Country | USA |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Go-around (VFR) |
| Report sent to ICAO? | No |
| Evacuation occurred | No |
| Date of most recent change to record | -- |
| User who most recently changed record | -- |
| Since inspection or accident | -- |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | 24 |
| Runway Length | 4500 |
| Runway Width | 100 |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |