NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CEN21LA046
Registry · N4856K
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
RYAN NAVION A
Year of manufacture
1949 · 71 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR E225 SERIES (225 hp)
Seats / Engines
5 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19560420
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A5FE60
Registrant of record
MONTCALM AVIATION LLC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s improper positioning of the fuel selector during takeoff, which was not in accordance with the preflight checklist and resulted in fuel starvation, a subsequent total loss of engine power, and an aerodynamic stall during an attempted forced landing.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that he was conducting a local flight with one passenger onboard. The pilot completed the pretakeoff checklist and engine run-up with no problems noted. During the initial climb, the engine “sputtered” and then lost total power. The pilot attempted to conduct a forced landing to grassy terrain, during which the airplane stalled and impacted terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel selector was in the “right tip-tank” position. However, according to the preflight checklist, the fuel selector should have been in the “main fuel tank” position during takeoff. Based on the found fuel selector position, it is likely that the fuel unported from the tip tanks, which resulted in fuel starvation and a loss of engine power. 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).
- — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of checklist-Pilot
- — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot
- — Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Fuel system-Fuel selector/shutoff valve-Incorrect use/operation
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2020_CEN21LA046.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall, fuel starvation). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2026 · Conference Paper
Computational Analysis of Steady State Aerodynamics of Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Configuration in Deep Stall
This study presents a computational investigation of steady state aerodynamics of the Subsonic Ultra-Green Aircraft Research (SUGAR) Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) configuration over a wide range …
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Automating Bird Diverter Installation through Multi-Aerial Robots and Signal Temporal Logic Specifications
This paper tackles the task assignment and trajectory generation problem for bird diverter installation using a fleet of multi-rotors.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Variation of Critical Crystallization Pressure for the Formation of Square Ice in Graphene Nanocapillaries
Two-dimensional square ice in graphene nanocapillaries at room temperature is a fascinating phenomenon and has been confirmed experimentally.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Polycrystallinity enhances stress build-up around ice
Damage caused by freezing wet, porous materials is a widespread problem, but is hard to predict or control. Here, we show that polycrystallinity makes a great difference to the stress build-up process…
- arXiv 2022 · arXiv preprint
Enhanced Prediction of Three-dimensional Finite Iced Wing Separated Flow Near Stall
Icing on three-dimensional wings causes severe flow separation near stall. Standard improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) is unable to correctly predict the separating reattaching flow due…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2021 · Journal article (JAAER)
Analysis on the Negative Emotional, Physiological, and Cognitive Responses Elicited from of the Activation of a Stall Alarm
Failing to identify an aerodynamic stall can lead to the inability of an aircraft to sustain flight. To warn pilots of an impending or fully-developed stall, many aircraft have safety devices installe…
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗