Pitts S-2B N9QT
27 August 1997 · Mountain View, Arkansas, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 27 August 1997 at about 23:30 local time, a Pitts S-2B registered N9QT, operated by Ronald K. Miller, was involved in an accident near Mountain View, Arkansas, United States. One person was 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.
The record
- Date
- at 23:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Mountain View, Arkansas, United States
- Coordinates
- 35.8707, -92.1103
- Aircraft
- Pitts S-2B
- Registration
- N9QT
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Ronald K. Miller
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Marshall → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- FTW97LA332
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
Fuel exhaustion due to the pilot's inadequate preflight planning. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
Witnesses reported the flight was inbound to the airport with a low fuel condition. The pilot had throttled back the airplane's power to '23' [inches manifold pressure] to continue toward the airport. En route, the pilot transmitted 'Oh, I just ran out and going down into a field, do not see the airport.' During the forced landing in a field, the airplane struck a fence. The pilot had flown the airplane for a total of 60 hours without any fuel system discrepancies. The pilot stated that his preflight preparation indicated that fuel was available at the airport where he had planned for refueling; however, upon landing at the airport with a low fuel condition, the pilot discovered that fuel was not available. Thinking that he had 5 gallons of fuel remaining, the pilot departed that airport for an airport 24 nautical miles away. Neither the Sectional Chart nor the Airport/Facility Directory indicate fuel availability at the airport chosen during the preflight planning.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Pitts S-2B accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Dec 1997 | Pitts S-2B | Bozeman, Montana, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 6 Apr 1996 | Pitts S-2B | Freehold Twsp, New Jersey, United States | John Mullaney | Fatal | 1 |
| 12 Jul 1996 | Pitts S-2B | Boca Raton, Florida, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 28 Nov 1998 | Pitts S-2B | Easton, Maryland, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 23 Apr 1998 | Pitts S-2B | Greenfield, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 31 Aug 1998 | Pitts S-2B | Sherman, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 Jun 1997 | Wsk Pzl Mielec M-18A | Waldenburg, Arkansas, United States | Leon E. Jacobi | No injuries | - |
| 24 Jun 1997 | Grumman G-164B | Swifton, Arkansas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Jul 1997 | Piper PA-28-140 | Ashdown, Arkansas, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 3 Jul 1997 | Reiffer RS-15 | Ward, Arkansas, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 13 Jul 1997 | Bell 47G-3B-1 | Crossett, Arkansas, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 21 Jul 1997 | Gulfstream-Schweizer G-164B | Palestine, Arkansas, United States | - | No injuries | - |