Piper PA-44-180 N357DA

Summary

On 14 September 1997 at about 04:54 local time, a Piper PA-44-180 registered N357DA was involved in an accident near The Dalles, Oregon, United States. 4 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

14 September 1997 at 04:54

Classification

Accident

Location

The Dalles, Oregon, United States

Coordinates

45.5400, -121.1507

Aircraft

Piper PA-44-180

Registration

N357DA

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pullman → Troutdale

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

SEA97LA210

Nobody was injured.

the pilot-in-command(CFI)'s failure to refuel which subsequently led to fuel exhaustion.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that during the last leg of a long cross country-flight, the left engine lost power. About fifteen minutes later, the right engine lost power. During the emergency descent for landing on an interstate highway, the airplane struck power lines. The airplane landed on the interstate and during the landing roll, the airplane's right wing struck a sign post. After the accident, inspection of the fuel system revealed that approximately one gallon of fuel remained in the system. The flight instructor stated that they had intended to refuel at the last departure point, however, he mistakenly figured the flight time to the final destination, and decided not to refuel.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.