Cessna 172E accident near Emeryville, California, July 24, 1999
On July 24, 1999 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172E, registered N5784T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Emeryville, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate in-flight planning and inadequate fuel consumption calculations, resulting in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Factors were the pilot's failure to have all appropriate flight manuals aboard the airplane and the low cloud ceilings.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 24, 1999 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Emeryville, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172E · all 172Es on the register
- Registration
- N5784T · no longer on the register · serial 17251684
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot made a forced landing on an interstate highway following a loss of engine power. His destination was overcast with thick clouds so he flew inland and descended to a low altitude to get under them. He turned back toward his destination airport. The airplane was level at 1,500 feet under the overcast about 10 miles north of his destination when the engine power went to zero. The engine restarted and stopped two more times. He setup to land on the highway. He thought he might hit a car, so he pulled the nose up into a full stall. The airplane hit hard; the right wing hit a road sign and spun the airplane into a fence. The pilot had planned about 3 hours en route; actual flight time was 3 hours 40 minutes. Recovery personnel drained no fuel from the right tank and 2 drops of fuel from the left tank. They drained less than 3 ounces from the fuel sump. During a follow-up inspection, investigators supplied the engine with fuel. The engine started and they completed normal run-up checks of the magnetos and propeller. They ran the engine to full power without discovering any discrepancies. The airplane had been modified so that the original 145 horsepower Continental engine had been replaced with a 180 horsepower Textron Lycoming engine with a constant speed propeller. The FAA accident coordinator looked onboard the airplane, but did not find any supplements or changes to the airplane flight manual regarding this engine modification.
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: 119 hours in all; 19 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 75 as pilot in command; 44 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,840 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 10, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: L12 Redlands CA at 12:20 pm
- Destination: HWD Hayward CA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; scat at 1,100 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:50 pm from OAK, 7 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.