Incident Overview
While cruising at flight level 350 (FL350), a flight experienced a flame-out of both engines. The crew declared an emergency to Salt Lake Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTC) and was vectored toward Page, Arizona, for a possible emergency landing. At 12,200 feet, the captain restarted both engines by switching the center tank boost pumps on. The aircraft then climbed to 17,000 feet and diverted to Las Vegas, landing at 1604 without further incident.
Sequence of Events
The flight had departed Minneapolis with the proper fuel load. However, the crew was distracted from the climb checklist after departure by a heading change and a knob coming off the digital flight guidance system while the captain was setting in a new heading. As a result, the item of 'fuel pumps-checked' was missed, and the center tank pumps were never turned on. During the restart, the captain realized the omission and corrected it. The flight had been operating on the main tanks, which were exhausted, causing the flame-outs. The center wing tank contained about 13,500 pounds of fuel at the time.
Findings
The dual engine flame-out was caused by fuel starvation from the main tanks. The center tank pumps were not activated due to the crew's distraction from the climb checklist.