NTSB CAROL · Event
Event ATL02LA108
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's inadequate planning decision that resulted in fuel exhaustion and subsequent loss of engine power.
Factual narrative
On May 28, 2002, at 1751 eastern daylight time, a Cessna T210N, N4672Y, registered to and operated by Flight Express, Inc., collided with the ground during a forced landing near Orlando Executive Airport in Orlando, Florida. The domestic cargo flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 135 with an instrument flight plan filed. Visual weather conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane sustained substantial damage, and the airline transport pilot was not injured. The flight departed Boca Raton, Florida, at 1630. According to the pilot, the flight was on an instrument approach to land on runway 07 at Orlando Executive Airport. Approximately 13 miles from the runway, the engine lost power and the pilot executed a forced landing to a nearby golf course. On roll-out , the nose wheel dug into the turf and the airplane flipped inverted. Examination of the airplane disclosed that the nose gear was sheared off, and there was damage to both the vertical stabilizer and the propeller. The examination of the airplane at the accident site also revealed that fuel was leaking from the right wing vent. No fuel was found in the left wing; the fuel selector was found in the off position. A functional check of the engine was performed, but was limited to 1500 RPM due to impact damage. Replacement of several parts was necessary, but on the third attempt, the engine started and appeared to operate normally. Examination also showed that the flight departed with fuel. the tachometer times at the beginning of the flight was 1674.2 hours, and 1679.2 hours at the time of the loss of engine power. The airplane lost engine power during an instrument approach and the pilot executed a forced landing to a nearby golf course. On roll-out , the nose wheel dug into the turf and the airplane flipped inverted. The examination of the airplane at the accident site also revealed that fuel was leaking from the right wing vent. No fuel was found in the left wing; the fuel selector was found in the off position. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2002_ATL02LA108.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (fuel exhaustion). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- AOPA Air Safety Institute 2023 · Safety advisor
Safety Advisor: Fuel Awareness
AOPA Air Safety Institute safety advisor on preventing fuel-exhaustion and fuel-starvation accidents in general aviation. Covers pre-flight fuel planning, reserve requirements (14 CFR 91.151, 91.167),…
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Abstract
U.S. Civil Rotorcraft Accidents, 1963 through 1997
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recorded 8,436 rotorcraft accidents during the period mid - 1963 through the end of 1997.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Contractor Report (CR)
A study of carburetor/induction system icing in general aviation accidents
An assessment of the frequency and severity of carburetor/induction icing in general-aviation accidents was performed. The available literature and accident data from the National Transportation Safet…
- NASA NTRS 2018 · Other
Parachuting to Safety
NASA's Langley Research Center awarded Ballistic Recovery Systems, Inc., three Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts to research and develop a new, low cost, lightweight recovery system …
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