While the National Transportation Safety Board does not normally determine a probable cause for an aircraft accident for months, or sometimes years after an event, the preliminary report the Board released of a July 11, 2019, accident involving an Icon A5 made it clear the pilot did not understand how to calculate the airplane’s actual fuel consumption in a variety of conditions. The Icon’s 100-hp Rotax 912iS engine quit as the airplane approached a 3-mile left base leg for Runway 16 at Chicago Executive Airport (PWK) just prior to darkness. Investigators found the Icon’s fuel tank to absolutely dry. The pilot escaped unharmed, but the A5 was destroyed when the aircraft struck trees and terrain in a nearby forest preserve.
NTSB Points to Pilot Error in Icon Crash Near Chicago
Key Takeaways:
- An Icon A5 crashed due to fuel exhaustion, with the NTSB's preliminary report indicating the pilot misunderstood how to calculate the aircraft's actual fuel consumption.
- The pilot planned for an economy fuel burn of 4.8 gallons per hour (gph) but operated the engine at nearly maximum power for over half the flight, leading to an actual consumption of 6.9-7.1 gph.
- This significant miscalculation resulted in the aircraft's fuel tank being completely dry upon approach to Chicago Executive Airport, causing the crash but leaving the pilot unharmed.
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