Cessna 210 lands on highway near Rifle, CO

Heard about it coming in to work this morning (Eagle, CO). Glad it isn't one we know. Good job puting it down on the highway.
 
Heard about it coming in to work this morning (Eagle, CO). Glad it isn't one we know. Good job puting it down on the highway.

**** job on checking for gas... He had just landed at Grand Junction on his way from VNY

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**** job on checking for gas... He had just landed at Grand Junction on his way from VNY

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Haha. I was just thinking, no matter how good of an off airport landing he makes it really doesn't make up for the stupidity of running out of fuel.

There is a possibility it isn't as simple as the news says.
 
Wouldn't it be odd for him to only have 15 minutes of fuel on board when landing? I still suspect something else happened.
 
re: just landed at GJY ....

"How can we be out of gas? You filled it up 10 minutes ago!"
"What? I didn't fill it up. I thought you did!"
 
Another good pre flight,to be sure. Running out of gas could be fatal in heavily congested areas.
 
"Hello, McFly!" [Biff gets fuel-exhaustion pilot in a head lock; administers noogie]

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He had just landed at Grand Junction on his way from VNY

Good sleuthing.

I'll bet a story of refueling snafu in in Grand Junction is forthcoming.

As an example of the kind of snafu it might be -- earlier this year, just one state south in New Mexico, on a long cross-country trip there was a Cirrus that refueled and soon thereafter had to land off field, in that case by chute. It turned out in the New Mexico case, according to the NTSB, they had refueled with only 5 gallons instead of 50, because they misread the self-serve gas pump's display. Apparently nobody looked in the plane's tanks, either.
 
Knowing someone who made a smoking hole after "landing" gas-free, I give him credit for a successful outcome.
 
according to the NTSB, they had refueled with only 5 gallons instead of 50, because they misread the self-serve gas pump's display.

Geez, 5 gallons takes only about 30 seconds to put in. You'd think that'd be a tip-off. Or that the bill was $25 or so, instead of $250.
 
I know a story about some people who ordered fuel and paid for it in advance, but apparently didn't check to see that it had actually been filled before they took off. Luckily they were in an airplane that has a low-fuel warning. They declared an emergency and were able to land at an airport before they ran out.
 
There was a bunch of chatter locally that it didn't look like the airplane had a current registration.

(Which doesn't really matter, but it's interesting considering the California tax thread and that it came out of VNY, but who knows where it's actually based...)

Maybe one of the "missing" unregistered aircraft from the statistics, has been found.
 
I'm gonna get rich and design a reserve tank, with valve - containing 30 mins of fuel suitable for many types, have an AD issued mandating it's retrofit into all GA airplanes.
Several land based vehicles have em' already.
 
I'm gonna get rich and design a reserve tank, with valve - containing 30 mins of fuel suitable for many types, have an AD issued mandating it's retrofit into all GA airplanes.
Several land based vehicles have em' already.

Some would just open it up, burn the reserve, and still land out.
 
It would be designed with my patented 'yoke mounted slapping hand' - if the reserve is ever used up the pilot gets slapped silly.

I've fantasized for years about having a robot arm or two attached to the computer monitor to be able to grab a user by the collar, pull their face up to the screen and then slap them and say "Read the dialog box dummy!"
 
I've fantasized for years about having a robot arm or two attached to the computer monitor to be able to grab a user by the collar, pull their face up to the screen and then slap them and say "Read the dialog box dummy!"

Just make the default dialog box say, "Delete all work?" and the only option is to click OK. Takes care of the problem forever. :)
 
Just make the default dialog box say, "Delete all work?" and the only option is to click OK. Takes care of the problem forever. :)

That works, but I'm more of a physical punishment type of programmer. :)
 
There was a bunch of chatter locally that it didn't look like the airplane had a current registration.

(Which doesn't really matter, but it's interesting considering the California tax thread and that it came out of VNY, but who knows where it's actually based...)

Maybe one of the "missing" unregistered aircraft from the statistics, has been found.

Quite a nice aircraft to let the reg lapse, guessing more $$ than hours type?
 
So no one dips the tanks anymore before they go flying?

I'm glad they made it out OK. I'll use it as a reminder to never skip that step before flying.
 
So no one dips the tanks anymore before they go flying?

I'm glad they made it out OK. I'll use it as a reminder to never skip that step before flying.

Fuel stick and chronograph, my onboard gauges are secondary.
 
So no one dips the tanks anymore before they go flying?

I'm glad they made it out OK. I'll use it as a reminder to never skip that step before flying.

Yeah. That's a step I am an anal retentive religiously fanatic zealot about. I dip the tank the guy on the truck just filled while he is dragging the hose over to the other side. It's a step I NEVER skip no matter what the circumstances are. If I leave the airplane after that for even a little while, I do it again before starting up.
 
I'm gonna get rich and design a reserve tank, with valve - containing 30 mins of fuel suitable for many types, have an AD issued mandating it's retrofit into all GA airplanes.
Several land based vehicles have em' already.

So, would that be a second, smaller red handle to pull?
Just askin' :rolleyes:

The early VW's didn't have fuel gauges and were set up with a manual tap to switch to a reserve tank once the main ran dry. Had a similar set up on my Land Cruiser when I lived in the Middle East.
 
My CFI beat into me that the gauges only need to be accurate when the tanks are full or empty to be legal.

That and the failure rate of my wooden dowel and stop watch is basically zero, the fuel gauge system, not so much.
 
On the Navajo it is common to take off with half filled tanks. Put the stick in it and it will come out dry.

But yes, 30 gallons at 20 gph and I know when it is time for more gas, and there have been times I needed pocket gas....
 
I flew to Jean NV on Saturday, and was explaining to my passenger why some careless pilots run out of fuel. With a nice tailwind, I was seeing 210 mph ground speed there, and about 145-150 mph back, with the same power setting/fuel burn both ways. Try to stretch it to that next airport if your fuel situation is already marginal and ***cough***cough***sputter***... you've got a glider, and not a very good one. :eek:
 
One guy called and had the airplane he was renting tomorrow topped off. He came in at 11 am to fly it to Vegas. But someone had rented it and flown it for an hour. He ran out of fuel...
 
I flew to Jean NV on Saturday, and was explaining to my passenger why some careless pilots run out of fuel. With a nice tailwind, I was seeing 210 mph ground speed there, and about 145-150 mph back, with the same power setting/fuel burn both ways. Try to stretch it to that next airport if your fuel situation is already marginal and ***cough***cough***sputter***... you've got a glider, and not a very good one. :eek:

C210 would be a chit glider
 
One guy called and had the airplane he was renting tomorrow topped off. He came in at 11 am to fly it to Vegas. But someone had rented it and flown it for an hour. He ran out of fuel...

Seems like you'd have to miss a number of direct clues on that one, not the least of which is the tanks wouldn't be full when you sticked them. Let alone the entry in the rental book on the same date right above yours.

When I rented it never mattered what I "called for" on the phone, I never trusted a phone call for anything. Sometimes it was done, sometimes it wasn't.
 
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