It may be appropriate that the words “GAS” appear on the surface of the tail-plane of this Cessna 310 as it was a fuel issue that led to a forced landing in a remote area of Australia in 1993.

 The plane, which is situated a short-distance from the Anne Beadell Highway in the Great Victoria Desert, made a forced landing after the pilot ran out of height, and time, to trouble-shoot an engine failure whilst en-route to the goldfields area of West Australia.

According to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau Report, a contributing factor to the accident was a lack of knowledge and understanding of the aircraft’s fuel system by the pilot.

And GAS? Goldfields Air Services…

Whilst the occupants were injured, no fatalities were suffered and these days the aircraft is a curiosity to many travelling this remote desert route.

Photo: Baz – The Landy