Fouga CM 170 accident near Long Beach, California, June 15, 1994
On June 15, 1994 at about 9:57 pm local time, a Fouga CM 170, registered N344FM, was destroyed in an accident near Long Beach, California (Long Beach airport). It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A loss of power to both engines due to fuel contamination and, the pilot-in-command's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed during the subsequent emergency, which resulted in an inadvertent stall. Factors in the accident were: 1) the manufacturer's inadequate design of the airplane's fuel system, which does not facilitate fuel sampling during preflight inspections or routine normal maintenance; 2) the lack of a fuel drain valve in the fuel system for fuel sampling purposes.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 15, 1994 · about 9:57 pm local time
- Place
- Long Beach, California · Long Beach · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Fouga CM 170 · all CM 170s on the register
- Registration
- N344FM · no longer on the register · serial 344
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A FORMER FRENCH AIRFORCE FOUGA CM 170 JET TRAINER LOST POWER IN BOTH ENGINES AND COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN AFTER TAKEOFF ABOUT 2,000 FEET FROM THE DEPARTURE END OF THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT REPORTED A LANDING GEAR PROBLEM AND REQUESTED CLEARANCE TO RETURN TO THE AIRPORT. WITNESSES REPORTED HEARING THE AIRPLANES'S JET ENGINES 'SPOOL DOWN' DURING THE TAKEOFF CLIMB ABOUT 600 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND (AGL). THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED TO ABOUT 300 FEET AGL WHEN THE LEFT WING DIPPED, FOLLOWED BY THE RIGHT WING DROPPING RAPIDLY. ANOTHER PILOT WHO WITNESSED THE ACCIDENT STATED THE AIRPLANE APPEARED TO STALL. THE AIRPLANE THEN DESCENDED UNCONTROLLED, COLLIDING WITH TERRAIN OFF THE AIRPORT BOUNDARY. THE AIRPLANE HAD BEEN RECENTLY IMPORTED TO THE UNITED STATES DISASSEMBLED AND DEFUELED. THE DESIGN OF THE AIRCRAFT FUEL SYSTEM DOES NOT ACCOMMODATE PREFLIGHT FUEL SAMPLING FROM THE RUBBER BLADDER FUEL CELLS IN THE FUSELAGE. WATER AND SMALL PARTICLES WERE OBSERVED IN A FUEL SAMPLE DRAINED FROM THE FUEL LINES AFTER THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT'S LANDING GEAR WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATES ANY TIME ENGINE RPM DROPS BELOW 18,000 RPM AND ANY ONE OF THE THREE LANDING GEAR IS RETRACTED.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,922 hours in all; 81 in this make and model; 49 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 1,493 as pilot in command; 861 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,591 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, June 15, 1994; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Turbomeca MARBORE II F3 (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: LBG at 9:56 pm
- Destination: PTV Porterville CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 30, 10,000 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,200 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:47 pm from LGB, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
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.