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Atlas / NTSB / CEN24LA030

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event CEN24LA030

2023-10-30 Lamar, Colorado, United States None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N1167J

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

MOONEY M20K

Engine

CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER (225 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

19821210

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A045D3

Registrant of record

BAS PART SALES LLC

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's inadequate fuel planning and improper in-flight decision making, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that about 4 hours and 15 minutes after departure, the engine lost all power. The pilot was successful in restoring engine power by switching fuel tanks and turning on the auxiliary fuel pump. However, the engine lost all power again about 5 miles from the destination runway. The pilot conducted a forced landing to a field, during which the airplane struck a fence resulting in substantial damage to both wings. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel tanks contained no usable fuel. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. 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).

  • Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid level
  • Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Fence/fence post-Contributed to outcome
  • Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring equip/instruments-Pilot
  • Personnel issues-Task performance-Planning/preparation-Fuel planning-Pilot
  • Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2023_CEN24LA030.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.