Aftermath: Running Low on Fuel Sooner Than Expected

There can be many reasons for running low on fuel sooner than expected: headwinds that prolong a flight, tailwinds that make you optimistically skip a planned stop, tanks not filled to the brim, too rich a mixture, a miscalculation in flight planning.

Peter Garrison

Friday, June 30, 2017 at 08:01 PM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

A pilot attempting a long night flight with passengers ran out of fuel just 6 miles short of his destination, resulting in a fatal crash after an emergency landing attempt.
The NTSB determined the primary cause was the pilot's inadequate fuel planning and mismanagement, as he failed to make a necessary second fuel stop or adjust his flight parameters.
A critical contributing factor was the pilot's impairment from cocaine use, which likely affected his judgment, decision-making, and en route fuel management, potentially leading to overconfidence.

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The distance from Campbell Airport (C81), a little north of Chicago, to St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport (PIE) in Florida is about 920 nm.

A Piper PA-28-181 Archer has two 25-gallon tanks, but is officially credited with 48 gallons of usable fuel. The pilot’s operating handbook says that at 75 percent power and best-power mixture, it burns 10.5 gallons an hour and cruises at 125 knots. The required fuel reserve for night VFR is 45 minutes at a “normal” power setting. Since a more conservative setting than max cruise certainly qualifies as normal, the reserve might arguably be six gallons. In addition, some extra fuel is required for taxi, run-up and climb; let’s say 1.5 gallons.