At 13:00 Pacific time, a Cessna A185F amphibian lost engine power over Lynwood. While attempting an emergency landing in a high school football field, the aircraft collided with trees and a fence. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he was flying from Seattle to Everett to refuel. He noted before takeoff that the fuel gauges read slightly below empty, but he said that he knew from experience that the fuel tank contained about 10 gallons when it read empty. During the aircraft recovery, a mechanic drained a total of about three gallons of fuel from the wings. The total fuel capacity is 80 gallons, with 74 gallons usable.
Dec. 3, Lynwood, Wash. / Cessna 185
At 13:00 Pacific time, a Cessna A185F amphibian lost engine power over Lynwood. While attempting an emergency landing in a high school football field, the aircraft collided with trees and a fence. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he was flying from Seattle to Everett to refuel. He noted before takeoff that the fuel gauges read slightly below empty, but he said that he knew from experience that the fuel tank contained about 10 gallons when it read empty. During the aircraft recovery, a mechanic drained a total of about three gallons of fuel from the wings. The total fuel capacity is 80 gallons, with 74 gallons usable....
Key Takeaways:
- A Cessna A185F amphibian experienced engine failure over Lynwood, resulting in a crash landing attempt that damaged the aircraft but left the pilot uninjured.
- The pilot had departed with fuel gauges reading "slightly below empty," believing he had about 10 gallons remaining based on prior experience.
- Investigators found only about three gallons of fuel in the tanks post-crash, suggesting the engine failure was likely due to fuel exhaustion caused by misjudging the actual fuel level.
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