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LAX85LA303

1985-07-04 · SANTA MARIA, California, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport SMX

Aircraft involved

Factual narrative

THE PILOT REPORTED TO THE TOWER, WHILE ON BASE LEG, THAT HE WAS OUT OF FUEL. HE THEN LANDED SHORT AND CONTACTED A FENCE AND A TREE ON THE LANDING ROLL. THE PILOT STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT CONTAINED 45 GALLONS OF FUEL WHEN HE DEPARTED AND THAT HE HAD FLOWN FOR ONE HOUR 39 MINUTES WHEN THE ENGINE LOST POWER. RECOVERY PERSONNEL CONFIRMED THAT THE AIRCRAFT'S WING TANKS CONTAINED NO FUEL. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1985_LAX85LA303.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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