What happened
On July 14, 2011, an EMB-711C aircraft, registration PT-NJC, was performing a flight from São José dos Quatro Marcos to Cáceres, Mato Grosso. While the aircraft was in the landing circuit for runway 35 at the Cáceres aerodrome, the engine ceased operation. The pilot elected to perform a forced landing on uneven terrain approximately 500 meters from the runway threshold. During the landing roll, the aircraft struck tree trunks, resulting in severe damage to the propeller, left wing, left main landing gear, and left elevator. The pilot and two passengers were uninjured.
The investigation
CENIPA investigators determined that the engine failure was caused by fuel exhaustion. The aircraft had been last refueled three days prior. Since that refueling, the pilot had completed two previous flight segments, each lasting 2 hours and 50 minutes. For the final leg, the pilot proceeded without refueling, believing the remaining fuel was sufficient for the mission.
Physical inspection of the aircraft revealed that both fuel tanks were completely empty and the fuel delivery system, including the fuel lines, pumps, and injectors, showed no traces of fuel. Notably, the pilot reported that during the flight, the fuel gauges indicated zero, but he dismissed these readings as unreliable instrument failures. Post-accident testing showed that once refueled, the fuel gauges functioned correctly and the engine operated normally.
Findings
- The primary cause of the engine failure was fuel exhaustion.
- The pilot failed to perform a visual check of the fuel quantity during the pre-flight inspection, which would have revealed the low fuel levels.
- The pilot's flight planning was inaccurate; while he believed a 55% power setting provided 6.5 hours of endurance, the aircraft's manual indicated that with 48 US gallons of usable fuel, the maximum endurance at that power setting was only 6 hours.
- The pilot misjudged the reliability of the fuel gauges when they indicated zero fuel, choosing to continue the flight rather than investigating the reading.
- The pilot had limited flight experience in this specific aircraft type.