CHI03LA323
2003-09-27 · Siloam Springs, Arkansas, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed
Airport SLG
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
A loss of engine power due to the pilot's inadequate planning/decision resulting in fuel exhaustion. Factors were the trees and the night conditions.
Factual narrative
On September 27, 2003, about 2200 central daylight time, a Cessna 150L, N21915, piloted by a commercial pilot, sustained substantial damage on impact with trees and terrain following an in-flight loss of engine power during an approach to Smith Field Airport (SLG), near Siloam Springs, Arkansas. The personal flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 91. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. No flight plan was on file. The pilot reported no injuries. The flight departed from Fayetteville, Arkansas, at time unknown and was approaching to land at SLG at the time of the accident. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Inspector examined the wreckage on-site. The inspector found that the "engine stopped producing power as a result of fuel starvation." The pilot and airplane owner were each mailed an accident report to complete. In his report, the airplane's owner stated that the pilot departed Fayetteville en route to Siloam Springs knowing he "had no more than 35 minutes fuel at night." The owner reported no mechanical malfunctions associated with the airplane on the flight. During an interview with the FAA, the pilot stated, "I ran out of gas." The airplane sustained substantial damage on impact with trees and terrain following an in-flight loss of engine power during an approach to land. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. An examination of the airplane revealed that the "engine stopped producing power as a result of fuel starvation." The airplane's owner stated that the pilot departed Fayetteville en route to Siloam Springs knowing he "had no more than 35 minutes fuel at night." The owner reported no mechanical malfunctions associated with the airplane on the flight. During an interview with the FAA, the pilot stated, "I ran out of gas." Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2003_CHI03LA323.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (fuel exhaustion, fuel starvation). All research papers
- AOPA Air Safety Institute 2023 · Safety advisor Safety Advisor: Fuel Awareness
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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
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