Source: NBC6
A small plane that crashed into a Pembroke Pines neighborhood over the summer ran out of fuel and may have been overloaded by more than 500 pounds, a new National Transportation Safety Board report said.
The NTSB final report lists “fuel exhaustion” as the defining event and probable cause of the July 13 crash of the Cessna that was carrying four people when it went down in a neighborhood while on approach to nearby North Perry Airport.
The four people on board were taken to a local hospital for treatment but all survived.
According to the report, the pilot’s “inadequate preflight fuel planning” led to the fuel exhaustion, causing the plane’s rear engine to completely lose power about three miles from the airport.
The 58-year-old pilot said he had “incorrectly calculated the airplane’s range and endurance prior to departing on the flight,” the report said.
The plane quickly lost altitude and crashed into a tree before slamming into the ground.
The report added that post-crash weight and balance calculations showed the plane was likely being operated beyond its maximum gross weight by more than 500 pounds, which likely contributed to the plane’s inability to maintain altitude after it lost one of the two engines.
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