Stinson 108-2 N427C

Summary

On 6 May 1996 at about 17:00 local time, a Stinson 108-2 registered N427C was involved in an accident near El Paso, Texas, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 May 1996 at 17:00

Classification

Accident

Location

El Paso, Texas, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Stinson 108-2

Registration

N427C

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Abilene → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW96LA202

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's improper inflight planning/decision, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a subsequent forced landing. A factor relating to the accident was: the unfavorable en route wind.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that at takeoff, he had 50 gallons of fuel on board. According to his calculations, the 50 gallons would allow a 4.6 hour flight, and his flight was planned to take 4.1 hours. The pilot reported that en route, he encountered wind which caused the estimated time of flight to extend to 4.7 hours. The airplane ran out of fuel approximately 8 miles from the destination airport. The pilot landed on a dirt road. Approximately 300 feet from the touchdown point, the road dropped slightly, and the airplane bounced. The airplane struck a small tree before coming to rest on its nose.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.