Cessna TU206F accident near Saline Valley, California, June 25, 1999
On June 25, 1999 at about 5:30 pm local time, a Cessna TU206F, registered N8728Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Saline Valley, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to verify the fuel quantity prior to departure, which led to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 25, 1999 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Saline Valley, California
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna TU206F · all TU206Fs on the register
- Registration
- N8728Q · registry record · serial U20603471
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight departed its home base, flew to another airport, and was returning home when the engine lost power due to fuel exhaustion. The pilot reported that he took off originally with full fuel tanks and had not refueled at the en route stop. He stated that he had the fuel selector positioned to the right tank, but he noticed that both the left and right fuel gauges indicated decreasing amounts of fuel. The right fuel gauge dropped to 'empty' and the engine suddenly quit. He switched the fuel selector to the left tank, turned on the boost pump, and the engine restarted. The engine quit again as he was over a group of mountains. The pilot was high and fast during the forced landing to a road and collided with an embankment. The airplane had been topped off with fuel 2 weeks prior to the accident, but the pilot did not remember if he had flown the airplane in that 2-week period; he did not maintain any type of pilot logbook or flight record. He thought that the fuel strainer valve had been stuck in the open position, allowing the fuel to drain out. According to Cessna, fuel cannot be used from both fuel tanks simultaneously, and if the fuel strainer had been stuck open, fuel would drain out only from the tank selected on the fuel selector valve. The airplane and engine were examined by an FAA inspector, with no mechanical discrepancies found. The pilot reported that he hadn't experienced any mechanical problems prior to the accident.
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: 3,100 hours in all; 2,950 in this make and model; 3,100 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,300 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 21, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 61B Boulder City NV at 4:45 pm
- Destination: BIH Bishop CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:56 pm from BIH, 50 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number LAX99LA231.