Fuel Exhaustion & Starvation · NTSB WPR10FA158
BEECH K35 — Boulder City, NV
| Date | March 13, 2010 |
| Location | Boulder City, NV |
| Aircraft | BEECH K35 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Emergency descent Loss of engine power (total) |
| Pilot age | 45 |
| Pilot total time | 639 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 301 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid management - C
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot - C
- Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Wire-Effect on equipment
- Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Glare-Effect on personnel
What happened
The pilot was on a cross-country flight to an airport that he had previously visited several times. Radar data indicated that he was flying northwest. The pilot contacted airport personnel 15 miles short of his intended destination, stating that he was low on fuel and that he needed to land immediately. Airport personnel informed him that runway 15 was active. The pilot reported that he did not see the airport and asked for help locating it. About 4 minutes 20 seconds later, the pilot requested a straight-in landing and indicated that he was gliding. Witnesses in another aircraft reported that they saw the airplane strike power lines and then descend directly to the ground east of the airport while on final approach for the runway. Inspection of the wreckage found that approximately 5 gallons of usable fuel remained in the left main tank. The remainder of the fuel tanks were either breached or contained less than usable amounts of fuel. Investigators found no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airframe or engine. The sun was 16 degrees above the horizon directly in the direction of the runway and glare likely hindered the pilot from seeing the wires.