Piper PA-25-235A N7050Z

Summary

On 10 July 1997 at about 20:45 local time, a Piper PA-25-235A registered N7050Z was involved in an accident near O'neil, Nebraska, 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.

Date

10 July 1997 at 20:45

Classification

Accident

Location

O'neil, Nebraska, United States

Coordinates

42.4600, -98.6407

Aircraft

Piper PA-25-235A

Registration

N7050Z

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Ferry

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Clark → Oneil

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI97LA209

Nobody was injured.

fuel exhaustion, due to the pilot's improper planning/decision and inadequate fuel consumption calculations. Factors relating to the accident were: the lack of an operable fuel indication system, and the high winds.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported the fuel tanks were topped off. The winds were from 160 degrees at 20 gusting to 27 knots. The pilot reported flying at 1,000 feet above ground level. He diverted to the west due to weather. He reported that after two hours of flight, the engine RPM dropped from 2,200 to 2,000, and then to 1,500 RPM. The pilot was maneuvering to land in a field which ran north to south, when the engine RPM dropped to 1,000. He then determined that he could not reach the intended field, so he turned to the southwest for a forced landing. He reported that as he flared during touchdown, a wind gust from the south lifted the left wing, and the right wing struck the ground. The airplane did not have an operable fuel indication system. A visual inspection disclosed a small amount of fuel in the carburetor float chamber and the firewall fuel strainer. There was no evidence of fuel in the fuel tank or lower fuselage cavity. Also, there was no evidence of fuel seepage at the crash site or stains on the fuselage where fuel could have seeped out.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.