NTSB Factual Report

On August 12, 2014, at 1152 eastern daylight time, a Christian Industries Pitts S2B, N50XV, was substantially damaged during a forced landing to a beach following a total loss of engine power near Sarasota, Florida. The flight instructor and private pilot under instruction sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the instructional flight, that departed Sarasota/Bradenton International Airport (SRQ), Sarasota, Florida, about 1105. The airplane was registered to and operated by an individual under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

During an interview with a local law enforcement officer, the flight instructor indicated that he performed a preflight inspection of the airplane prior to departing for the aerobatic instructional flight. He stated that he "thought he had about 15 gallons of fuel," and the engine fuel consumption was about 11 gallons per hour. After about 45 minutes of flight time, while returning to their base airport, at an altitude about 5,000 feet above ground level, the engine experienced a total loss of power. The flight instructor elected to land the airplane on a beach. During the landing roll, the airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted in the water, and incurred substantial damage to the fuselage and empennage.

According to FAA records, the airplane was issued a normal and aerobatic airworthiness certificate in 2013. It was powered by a Lycoming AEIO-540-D4A5, 260 hp, engine. According to maintenance logbooks, the most recent annual inspection was completed on August 22, 2013. At the time of the inspection, the airplane had accumulated 905 hours of total time in service.

A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel tanks contained a total of one gallon of blue fluid, similar in color and smell as 100LL aviation fuel. In addition, the engine was examined and engine continuity of the powertrain was confirmed from the propeller flange to the accessory section of the engine. Compression was confirmed on all cylinders using the thumb method, and the spark plugs were and exhibited normal wear. During the examination, the fuel line to the engine was removed and was devoid of any fluid.

According to the airplane Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH), the airplane was equipped with a 24 gallon main fuel tank and a 5 gallon auxiliary wing fuel tank. The 5 gallon wing tank was not to be used during aerobatic operations. In addition, the main fuselage tank contained 1 gallon of unusable fuel. Lastly, the POH had a warning that stated, "DO NOT PERFORM LOW ALTITUDE AEROBATICS WITH LESS THAN 1/4 OF FUEL IN FUSELAGE TANK."

According to the engine manufacturer's Operator's Manual, the engine had an average fuel consumption of 15 gallons per hour while operating at 75% of rated power.

NTSB Probable Cause

A total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, which resulted from the flight instructor's inadequate preflight fuel planning.