What happened
A private instrument flight rules (IFR) mission was underway from Strausberg Airport in Germany to Bornholm Airport in Denmark when an emergency occurred. Prior to departing Strausberg, the aircraft was replenished with 200 liters of jet fuel. While the filed flight plan indicated an expected flight duration of 30 minutes with a total endurance of 90 minutes, the pilot had notified authorities that the actual available endurance was roughly one hour.
After departing at 10:58, the pilot noticed a warning light indicating low fuel levels. The flight proceeded without further incident until the aircraft reached a position approximately 18 nautical miles southwest of the destination. At this stage, the pilot transitioned from IFR to visual flight rules (VFR) and cancelled the original flight plan to perform a visual approach to runway 29.
During the descent, the aircraft's airspeed began to drop. As the aircraft turned onto the final approach for runway 29, the landing gear was deployed and flaps were set to 40 degrees. At 11:37:08, the pilot contacted Roenne Tower for landing clearance under wind conditions of 280 degrees at 19 to 29 knots. While positioned on the left base leg, both engines experienced fuel starvation. Following three emergency declarations by the pilot at 11:39:18, the aircraft entered a stall and struck a sweet corn field.
Findings
- The aircraft was operating with a significantly reduced fuel endurance compared to the original flight plan.
- The primary cause of the loss of power was fuel starvation affecting both engines simultaneously.