Accident Details
On February 20, 2024, at 1312 central standard time, a Cessna 182P, registration N14YY, was involved in an accident near Marks, Mississippi. The airplane was destroyed, and the private pilot sustained serious injuries. The flight was operated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a positioning flight.
Flight History
The purpose of the flight was for the pilot to position the airplane after it had been purchased by its new owner. Before the accident flight, the pilot flew the airplane with the previous owner to become familiar with it, reporting no issues during the familiarization flight. He planned to fly to Panola County Airport (PMU) in Batesville, Mississippi, to refuel.
En route to PMU, the pilot added rudder trim twice because the airplane was tracking left. About 30 nautical miles (nm) from PMU, he switched the fuel selector from BOTH to LEFT; about one minute later, the engine exhibited signs of fuel starvation. He returned the selector to BOTH, and the engine regained power. Approximately 13 nm from PMU, he again selected LEFT, and the engine again showed signs of fuel starvation. He then switched back to BOTH, knowing there was good fuel flow in that position. He decided to divert to Selfs Airport (MMS) in Marks, Mississippi, to avoid fuel exhaustion.
On the first landing attempt at MMS, the pilot had difficulty maintaining a straight descent to runway 2. Upon touchdown, the airplane turned left, so he added power for a go-around. While lining up again, he could not maintain a normal straight-in approach, noting an apparent lack of rudder control. After touchdown on the second attempt, the airplane turned left, prompting another go-around. During the third landing attempt, the pilot reported fighting the airplane and needing to land due to expected engine power loss from fuel starvation. The airplane then impacted terrain off the runway edge and was destroyed by impact forces.
Witness Observations
A witness video showed the airplane approach and attempt landings on runway 2 at high speed with the nose yawed left and flaps retracted before impact. The approaches were unstabilized, and the airplane’s attitude was uncoordinated. The engine was operating during the approaches.
Postaccident Examination
Examination of the fuel system revealed that the wing fuel tank caps were Monarch Fuel Caps installed under a supplemental type certificate. The left cap did not allow air to be drawn in when suction was applied to its bottom; the right cap allowed air to be drawn in. The left and right wing bladder tanks were attached, secured, and exhibited no wrinkles, with no debris inside. The left and right wing forward and aft fuel line outlet screens were unobstructed. Shop air blown into the outlets exited the gascolator outlet, consistent with no blockage and a fuel selector position of BOTH. The gascolator screen and bowl were clean.
Fuel lines leading to and exiting the fuel selector assembly were attached and secure. The fuel selector handle was broken off from the input shaft consistent with impact damage, and the valve position was confirmed to be in BOTH. The selector operated without binding or sticking, and detents were felt through each position.
The wing flaps and cockpit wing flap indicator were fully retracted. Flight control continuity was confirmed from the control surfaces to the cockpit controls.
The cockpit rudder trim indicator exhibited impact damage and was off its scale, with the indicator tip at the full nose right stop. The rudder trim/nose wheel bungee sprocket was nearly fully rotated to its full nose left trim stop.
Pilot Information
The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a single engine land rating issued in 1975. A review of his logbook, with entries from May 12, 2022, to January 23, 2024, showed a total flight time of 427.8 hours in all aircraft, with no entries for flights in a Cessna 182 during that period. On the NTSB accident report form, he reported 9 hours total time in the accident airplane make and model, with 4 hours in the past 90 days and 4 hours in the past 30 days.