Primary finding
Probable cause
The student pilot's inadequate inflight planning, which resulted in fuel exhaustion. A factor was his geographical disorientation.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The student pilot planned a cross country flight with a scheduled fuel stop at the second en route destination. At the second city he was unable to locate the airport and decided to follow the interstate highway back to nashville, tn, his departure city. As he neared nashville, he became concerned about fuel and requested vectors to an airport. Prior to reaching the airport, the engine quit because of fuel exhaustion. The tachometer indicated an elapsed flight of 3.8 hours, while the student's flight planning log depicted 3.6 hours required to return to the departure airport.
Source record
Factual narrative
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