Accident Overview
On January 26, 2013, at approximately 1800 Pacific standard time, a Cessna 152, registration N68757, experienced a loss of engine power while on approach for landing on runway 31 at Castle Airport (MER), Atwater, California. The student pilot, who was the sole occupant, executed a forced landing in an open field about 3 miles west of the airport. During the landing rollout, the airplane struck a culvert and nosed over, coming to rest inverted. The pilot was not injured. The airplane, operated by Sierra Academy of Aeronautics under 14 CFR Part 91 as an instructional flight, sustained substantial damage to the tail section and wings.
Flight Details
The local area flight departed from MER at about 1600. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The student pilot reported arriving at the airport at 1530 for the scheduled 1600 flight. He checked local weather and calculated weight and balance, planning for full fuel. However, during the preflight inspection, he noted about 12 gallons of fuel on board and that he needed a bottle of oil for the engine. The flight was planned to last 1.3 hours, and no problems were encountered initially.
About 10 minutes after beginning the return to MER, the pilot became lost and contacted NorCal Approach for assistance. Despite receiving position reports, he could not identify the airport until he was about 10 miles away. At that point, the engine began to run rough. The student pilot added full power; the engine ran normally for about 20 seconds and then stopped. He attempted to restart the engine but was unsuccessful. He trimmed the airplane for best glide speed and flared before landing. During the rollout, the airplane impacted a small rise in the ground and came to rest inverted.
Post-Accident Observations
The flight school was granted permission to recover the airplane. The chief pilot reported that upon arriving at the accident site, there was no smell of fuel and the fuel tanks had not been compromised. After the airplane was righted, a total of 1 gallon of fuel was drained—half a gallon from each wing tank.
According to the 1978 Cessna pilot's operating handbook, the airplane has a total fuel capacity of 26.0 gallons, with 24.5 gallons usable and a maximum of 1.5 gallons of unusable fuel. With full fuel, the range would be approximately 3.4 hours.
Flight School Response
Following the accident, all flights were grounded pending a safety meeting. The flight school planned to reiterate that solo students should not depart with less than full fuel tanks and should not be dispatched with less than 3 hours of daylight remaining for a local flight.