NTSB Factual Report

On December 21, 2001, at 1025 eastern standard time, a Cessna 210D, N3776Y, registered to Stone House Aviation Inc., and operated by the commercial pilot, collided with the ground while attempting an emergency landing near Vero Beach, Florida. The personal flight operated under the provision of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual weather conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot and passenger both received minor injuries; the airplane was substantially damaged. The flight departed Palm Beach, Florida, at 0945.

According to the pilot, the flight departed Palm Beach with partial fuel. During the preflight inspection of the airplane, the pilot used the universal fuel hawk dipstick to check the quantity of fuel in the system, but he was not able to determine the exact fuel quantity at departure. As the flight approached Vero Beach, the tower controller cleared the flight to land on runway 29L. However, while on downwind to land on runway 29, the pilot was advised by the tower controller of a wind shift that favored runway 04. The flight was subsequently cleared to land on runway 04. Approximately 3 to 4 miles southwest of the airport, as the pilot maneuvered to reenter the traffic pattern, the pilot radioed that the engine had lost power, and he would not be able to return to the airport for an emergency landing. The pilot selected an off-airport landing area and established an approach to a nearby street. As the airplane touched down on the public street, the right wing collided with the ground.

Examination of the airplane revealed that the right wing assembly had been torn off. The main landing gear were attached, but the nose wheel had been separated. The windshield was broken and the top two sections of the engine cowling had been torn from the airframe. The post-accident examination of the engine assembly revealed the following: the propeller assembly could be rotated by hand, there were no restrictions and there was compression on all six cylinders, the fuel inlet screen was removed and there was only a trace of fuel, the fuel supply line from the firewall fitting to the fuel pump was removed and there was no fuel present, the gascolator bowl was removed and it had approximately 25% of its normal fuel capacity. No fuel was recovered from the fuel tanks, and there was no report of fuel spillage at the accident site

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's inadequate preflight fuel requirements for the flight, resulting in fuel exhaustion and the subsequent loss of engine power.