Amateur-built SWEARINGEN SX-300 accident near Richfield, Utah, June 4, 2000
On June 4, 2000 at about 6:23 pm local time, a amateur-built SWEARINGEN SX-300, registered N2H, was substantially damaged in an accident near Richfield, Utah. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Fuel starvation due to the unavailability of fuel to the engine for undetermined reasons and the pilot's misjudgment of distance/altitude on final approach. Contributing factors were the pilot's premature gear extension and the berm.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 4, 2000 · about 6:23 pm local time
- Place
- Richfield, Utah · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SWEARINGEN SX-300 SWEARINGEN
- Registration
- N2H · no longer on the register · serial SA29-66
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While on downwind abeam the airport, the engine lost all power. The pilot switched from the left to the right fuel tank and turned on the boost pump. He said he could hear the electric boost pump running. With the propeller windmilling, the engine would not start, nor would it start when the pilot set the mixture to full rich and opened the throttle fully. The pilot attempted to land on the runway. When he thought he could glide to the runway, he lowered the landing gear. Aerodynamic drag dissipated what little airspeed remained, and the airplane touched down short of the runway. During the rollout, the airplane struck a raised road berm. Post-accident examination revealed an empty left tank and 17 gallons of fuel in the right tank. When the boost pump was activated, fuel flowed to the engine fuel control unit. The pilot reported that he had run fuel tanks empty before, but the engine always restarted after the fuel selector was switched to a tank containing fuel and the boost pump was switched on. The boost pump is mounted on the firewall about 6 inches above the fuel tank and about 2 inches below the engine-driven fuel pump. Blueprints show the boost pump being mounted in the area of the nose wheel well. Other builders of this airplane have installed a pulse pump at the fuel selector valve location because of possible fuel starvation.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,028 hours in all; 708 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 918 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 21, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SLC Salt Lake City UT at 5:45 pm
- Destination: RIF
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:54 pm from MLF, 60 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N2H the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.