NTSB Factual Report

On August 3, 2002, about 2225 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-32-300, N110CF, was substantially damaged during a forced landing near the Bluffton Airport (5G7), Bluffton, Ohio. The certificated commercial pilot and the three passengers were not injured. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight that departed the Delaware County Airport (MIE), Muncie, Indiana, about 2115. A flight plan was not filed, and the flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

According to the pilot, he flew the airplane the day before the accident. The flight was uneventful, and after landing at Metcalf Field (TDZ), Toledo, Ohio, the airplane's home airport, the airplane was serviced with a full load of fuel. The next day, the pilot and one of the passengers arrived at the airport about 1645. The pilot preflighted the airplane, and confirmed all four fuel tanks were full, but the fuel gauge for the right outboard tank indicated empty, and the gauge for the right main tank indicated approximately 2/3. The pilot, along with the passenger boarded the airplane. He then started the engine, and taxied to the runup area, where he performed the engine runup checks. No anomalies were identified, and the pilot noted that all the fuel gauges indicated full. He then taxied onto the runway, advanced the throttle, and departed for Bluffton. The flight to Bluffton was approximately 25 minutes, and uneventful. After landing, the pilot shutdown the engine, and loaded two more passengers.

He then restarted the engine, taxied to the active runway, and departed for Muncie, where he and his passengers planned to have dinner. The flight took approximately 50 minutes, and the airplane performed as expected. After dinner, the pilot, along with the three passengers returned to the airplane. The pilot conducted a walk around inspection, loaded the passengers, and started the engine. He noted no anomalies during the engine runup checks, and once cleared by the tower controller, taxied onto the active runway for the return flight to Bluffton. The pilot advanced the throttle, the engine responded, and the airplane began to accelerate down the runway. The airplane became airborne where expected, and the pilot climbed to 7,500 feet msl.

When the airplane was approximately 45 miles to the southwest of Bluffton, the pilot started a gradual descent to 3,500 feet msl. During the descent, the pilot was focusing on reducing manifold pressure 1-inch per minute, and increasing the mixture. Approximately 8 miles to the southwest, the pilot altered his course to over fly the town of Ada, Ohio, so two of the passengers could see their hometown from the air. The pilot circled the town, started a descent to 1,200 feet msl, and preceded towards Bluffton, which was about 8 miles to the northwest.

In preparation for landing, the pilot selected the electric fuel boost pump to "ON." A couple of minutes later, the engine started to run rough, and then lost power. The pilot selected a different fuel tank, and made several unsuccessful attempts to restart the engine. He activated the lights for the airport, and turned directly towards the approach end of runway 5. Once he realized he did not have sufficient altitude to make the airport, he started looking for a suitable forced landing area, while continuing to runway 5. Unable to see the ground through the darkness, the pilot switched the landing light "ON." The light activated, but did not illuminate the ground. As the airplane descended, the pilot could see the runway lights and taxi lights starting to appear closer to one another, which indicated to him that the airplane was approaching the elevation of the airport. He selected 10 degrees of flaps, and started a gradual flare to reduce airspeed. He then lost sight of the airport. The airplane touched down in a soybean field, rolled about 400 feet before the nose wheel collapsed, and then it came to a stop.

According to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, examination of the wreckage revealed that the left outboard fuel tank was full, the left main fuel tank was approximately 3/4 full, the right main fuel tank was approximately 3/4 full, and the right outboard fuel tank was empty. All four tanks appeared to be intact, and the fuel selector was in the "OFF" position. In addition, the nose wheel was collapsed, and the firewall displayed compression wrinkles.

After the on scene portion of the investigation was completed, the airplane was recovered to a hangar at Metcalf Field. An engine examination was performed on August 12, 2002. A rotational force was applied to the engine crankshaft, the engine rotated, compression was obtained on all six cylinders, and all twelve ignition leads produced spark. During the course of the examination, the inspector did not identify any preimpact failures with either the engine or the airframe.

The pilot added that on the first flight of the day he used the left main tank. On the second, he used the right main tank, and on the accident flight, he used the right outboard tank. No fuel gauge anomalies were observed during any of the flight. When the engine lost power, the right outboard tank was selected, and the pilot believed he accidentally exhausted all the fuel from the selected tank.

According to the Pilot's Operating Handbook, the right outboard fuel tank was capable of holding approximately 23.5 gallons of useable fuel, and with no reserve, the fuel required to complete the flight would have been approximately 22.0 gallons.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's fuel mismanagement with his failure to position the fuel selector to the proper tank which resulted in engine fuel starvation.