Event CEN17LA036

Factual narrative

On November 6, 2016, about 1222 central standard time, a Stinson L5, N4252K, nosed over during a forced landing at the San Marcos Regional Airport (HYI), San Marcos, Texas. The private pilot and passenger received minor injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The aircraft was registered to a private individual and was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not on a flight plan. The flight originated from HYI about 1100.The pilot reported the airplane bounced while landing on runway 13, so he performed a go-around. He reported the engine lost power at an altitude of about 500 ft above the ground during climbout. The pilot made a turn to land on runway 35; however, the airplane was not able to make it to the runway, so he landed on the wet grass between the runways. Upon touchdown, the left main gear collapsed when it dug into the soft terrain and the airplane nosed over resulting in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer and wings. The airplane was full of fuel, 15 gallons usable in each tank, when the flight was initiated. The pilot reported he had the left fuel tank selected during the entire 1 hour, 22-minute-long flight. The pilot reported the fuel quantity indicator showed between ¼ and 3/8 of a tank of fuel remaining in the left fuel tank at the time of the accident. The right fuel tank was full, and the pilot reported he should have switched tanks before the landing. He reported the left fuel tank had previously shown signs of fuel seeping and that the fuel quantity gauges were not reliable. The pilot stated the airplane usually burned between 9 and 10 gallons per hour fuel. A postaccident examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Inspector revealed fuel was not present in the fuel line leading into the engine and there was very little fuel in the left fuel tank. The inspector stated that the location of the fuel pick-up line in the wing, would have allowed the fuel in the wing to un-port during the climb. The private pilot reported that the airplane bounced while landing on the runway, so he conducted a go-around. During climbout, the engine lost power at 500 ft above ground level. The pilot turned the airplane to land on another runway; however, the airplane was not able to reach the runway, so he landed on wet grass between the runways. Upon touchdown, the left main landing gear collapsed when it dug into the soft terrain, and the airplane nosed over. The pilot reported that, for the entire flight, he had the fuel selector positioned on the left tank. The pilot added that the airplane usually burned between 9 and 10 gallons of fuel per hour. Therefore, given the flight was about 1 hour 22 minutes long and the tank held 15 gallons of usable fuel, the left tank probably contained about 2 to 3 gallons of usable fuel at the time of the accident. The right fuel tank was full. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that there was no fuel in the fuel line leading into the engine. The position of the fuel pick-up line in the wing would have allowed the fuel in the wing to unport during the climbing turn. Given the low fuel level in the selected left fuel tank, it is likely that the fuel supply to the engine was interrupted during the climbing turn. If the pilot had selected the full right fuel tank, the loss of power would likely not have occurred. 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 Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid management - C
• — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surface-Soft surface-Contributed to outcome