Event CEN15LA296

Factual narrative

On July 5, 2015, about 1815 central daylight time, a Colonial C-1 Skimmer amphibious airplane, N257B, made a hard forced landing near Chico, Texas. The airplane sustained substantial damage and the pilot received serious injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by a private individual under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane departed the Bridgeport Municipal Airport (XBP), Bridgeport, Texas, about 1810, and was en route to the Bowie Municipal Airport (0F2), Bowie, Texas. The pilot reported that he had flown the airplane 8-10 times after the most recent refueling. On the day of the accident he intended to refuel the airplane at 0F2. Prior to departure the fuel quantity gauge indicated about 3/8 full of fuel. About 5 minutes after departure the engine power reduced to 1,700 rpm and then 1,000 rpm. He identified an open field for a forced landing; the airplane landed hard. The pilot stated that the fuel bladder had come unsnapped from the wing which allowed the fuel quantity transmitter to give a false reading. The pilot stated that when he bought the airplane, he also repaired and reassembled it. According to the responding Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, the airplane sustained damage to the fuselage. The fuel bladder tanks were collapsed and a small amount of unmeasured fuel was observed. The fuel system remained intact and there was no evidence of a fuel spill at the accident site. During the postaccident examination, the FAA inspector stated the main fuel line to the engine was loosened and the electric fuel pump operated; fuel flowed freely from the open fuel line. The fuel line was reconnected and the engine starter was initiated. The engine immediately started and operated until the remaining trapped fuel was exhausted. The wings were rocked up and down to free more trapped fuel and the engine restarted. The engine operated normally with no apparent mechanical anomalies until the remaining fuel was exhausted. Flight control continuity was confirmed to all flight and engine controls. The pilot reported that he had flown the airplane about 8 to 10 times after its most recent fueling and that he intended to fly to the destination airport to refuel the airplane. Before departure, the fuel quantity gauge indicated that the fuel tank was about 3/8 full of fuel. About 5 minutes after departure, the engine experienced a loss of power, so the pilot conducted a forced landing in a field, during which the airplane landed hard. A postaccident examination revealed that the fuel bladder tank was collapsed, and a small amount of unmeasured fuel was observed. The fuel system remained intact, and there was no evidence of a fuel spill at the accident site. The engine operated normally when the fuel trapped in the tank was freed by rocking the wings. It is likely that the small amount of fuel in the fuel tank was unusable during the flight and was insufficient to reach the engine. The pilot stated that the fuel bladder had become unsnapped from the wing, which allowed the fuel quantity transmitter to indicate a false reading. However, the pilot did not conduct adequate preflight fuel planning to ensure there was sufficient fuel on board because he relied solely on the fuel gauges. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid level - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Planning/preparation-Fuel planning-Pilot - C
• F Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Fuel system-Fuel indication system-Malfunction - F
• F Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Fuel system-Fuel storage-Malfunction - F