Event WPR18TA122

Factual narrative

On April 18, 2018, about 0830 Pacific daylight time, an experimental, amateur-built Puslar III airplane, N332RP, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Salton City, California. The private pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot reported that he was in cruise flight around 6,700 ft for about 30 minutes when the engine suddenly lost power. He attempted to start the engine several times; however, it would not sustain power. Unable to glide to the nearest airport, the pilot performed a forced landing on open, desert terrain. The airplane impacted a small berm which substantially damaged the fuselage. revealed that the fuel selector was positioned on the left fuel tank; upon visual examination, there was no fuel present in the left fuel tank. The fuel quantity gauge indicated that the on-scene examination by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector left fuel tank was empty, and the right fuel tank was about 1/4 full. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane and stated that, if had he read the checklist, checked the fuel gauge, or checked the fuel selector valve and tuned on the electric pump, the accident may have been avoided. The pilot reported that, after about 30 minutes of flight, the engine suddenly lost total power. He attempted to start the engine several times; however, it would not sustain power. The pilot performed a forced landing to desert terrain, during which the airplane impacted a small berm, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage. Examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel selector was positioned on the left fuel tank, which contained no fuel. The fuel quantity gauge indicated that the left fuel tank was empty, and the right fuel tank was about 1/4 full. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane and stated that if he had "read the checklist," he might have been able to restart the engine. It is likely that the pilot's mismanagement of the fuel during the flight resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation. 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 Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid management - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Planning/preparation-Fuel planning-Pilot - C
• F Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of checklist-Pilot - F