What happened
The day before the accident, the Cessna 210 had completed a series of flights from Newton, KS, to Oklahoma City, OK, then to Shawnee, OK, and back to Newton, KS. The aircraft was not refueled during these legs. On the day of the accident, an operator arranged for the pilot to fly passengers on a round trip from Tulsa, OK, to Iowa City, IA.
The pilot accepted the mission despite having no prior experience flying the Cessna 210. Following a 30-minute checkout in Newton, KS, the pilot flew to Tulsa to pick up the passengers. During the approach to Tulsa, the pilot noted that the fuel gauges indicated empty. Instructions were given to refuelers to top off the tanks. A refueler added 48.8 gallons of fuel into the aircraft's 120-gallon total capacity. While a passenger paid for the fuel, the pilot did not review the fuel slip and was unaware of the specific amount added.
During the preflight, the pilot did not visually check the fuel level and stated he did not believe the fuel gauges were reliable. After 2.6 hours of flight, the airplane impacted trees and power lines approximately 1/2 mile north of Iowa City Airport.
The investigation
The investigation found no evidence of fuel siphoning or leaking from the aircraft. There was also no indication of fuel present at the crash site.