NTSB Factual Report

On November 4, 1998, at 1558 hours Pacific standard time, a Cessna T210L, N29058, collided with trees and terrain while attempting a forced landing after experiencing a loss of engine power near Lodi, California. The aircraft, operated by the pilot under 14 CFR Part 91 of the Federal Aviation Regulations, was destroyed in the impact sequence and the postcrash ground fire. The private pilot sustained serious injuries and subsequently died on November 18, 1998. The remaining four passengers received serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time. No flight plan was filed for the personal cross-country flight, which originated in Bozeman, Montana, at 1210 mountain standard time as a non-stop flight to San Carlos, California.

According to one of the passengers, not long after they had passed the Lodi airport the pilot said to him that they were getting low on fuel and he was going to turn around and land at Lodi to refuel. Shortly thereafter, the pilot announced that they were running out of gas and that they needed a road to land on. At this time, the engine quit and he noticed the pilot switch to the other fuel tank in an attempt to restart the engine with no success. They had just passed the airport at Lodi and were turning in an attempt to reach the airport. The passenger said that during the turn, the aircraft "lost momentum," went down, collided with trees, and crashed in a dry riverbed.

The wreckage was examined on-site by inspectors from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) with technical assistance provided by Cessna Aircraft and Teledyne Continental. In addition, post-recovery examinations were conducted in Pleasant Grove, California.

The fuselage from the firewall aft to just forward of the horizontal stabilizers, and, the inboard left wing section to include the fuel tank, were consumed by the postcrash fire. The fuel selector valve was found positioned to the left fuel tank. The left fuel tank finger screen was clear. The right wing was unburned, with no hydraulic deformation evident to the tank structure. The fuel caps were in the filler openings; the O-ring seals were intact with no evidence of staining on the upper wing skin surface aft of the openings. The engine separated from the firewall and was located some distance in front of the aircraft. All three propeller blades were bent aft in smooth curves without leading edge damage or chordwise scoring.

The engine was shipped to Teledyne Continental Motors where a detailed teardown examination was conducted under the supervision of an FAA inspector. A report of the examination is appended to this report. According to the supervising FAA inspector, evidence of lubrication and normal operating signatures were found on all internal components. The fuel-metering unit and manifold valve were installed on calibrated test benches for a functional test. For the manifold valve, the inlet pressure was within range at flow rates below 50 pounds per hour (PPH), and, less than 1 psi above normal range at flow rates above 50 PPH.

During testing, a leak was found in the nose seal of the engine driven fuel pump, which allowed fuel to leak out through the unit's overboard vent drain. The leak was quantified at 3 to 4 gallons per hour at cruise power settings. Disassembly of the unit revealed an area of rust etching on the driveshaft.

Further investigation disclosed that the aircraft was last fueled at Arlins Aircraft Service, Inc., Bozeman, Montana, at 1100 mountain standard time on the day of the accident. According to company records, 38.2 gallons of 100LL aviation fuel were loaded onboard, and that the addition of the fuel topped both fuel tanks.

The Cessna Aircraft Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH) for the model T210L notes that the aircraft carries a total of 89 usable gallons of fuel. The performance section of the POH shows a 13.83-gallon per hour fuel consumption rate at 65 percent power at a 10,000-foot pressure altitude. Based on a comparison of the departure time to the accident time, the aircraft was airborne for 4.9 hours and would have used 67.7 gallons of fuel. At a 4.0-gallon per hour leak rate through the fuel pump nose seal, an additional 19.6 gallons would have been consumed for a total fuel usage of 87.3 gallons.

The aircraft maintenance records were not located and were believed to have been onboard the aircraft. The owner reported that the last annual inspection was accomplished May 14, 1998, about 264 hours prior to the accident. The engine was reported to have accumulated 1,405 hours since overhaul. No detailed information on the fuel pump was found.

NTSB Probable Cause

Fuel exhaustion due to a leaking engine driven fuel pump nose seal, which increased the engine fuel consumption rate above the published performance chart values.