Piper PA-28-180 N7177W

Summary

On 25 November 1998 at about 17:00 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N7177W was involved in an accident near Reno, Ohio, 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

25 November 1998 at 17:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Reno, Ohio, United States

Coordinates

39.4594, -81.2703

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N7177W

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sussex → Parkersburg

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC99LA031

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's disregard of the information provided by the fuel gauges, which resulted in fuel exhaustion. Factors in the accident included leaks in the fuel system, and the pilot's reliance on using timing alone to determine fuel consumption.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane departed on a cross country flight with full fuel tanks. The pilot flight-planned for 4 hours of flight, but after 2 1/2 hours noticed the 'fuel gauges looked unusually low.' He diverted to an airport, and 1/2 hour later, about 2 nautical miles from that airport, the engine lost power. The pilot performed a forced landing to a field. Post flight inspection revealed evidence of slight fuel leakage at the carburetor fuel inlet fitting, a pinhole leak in the fuel primer line, and a very slight fuel stain emanating from the left wing fuel cap. There was no evidence of faulty fuel gauges at low fuel levels. A review of the local sectional aeronautical chart revealed that the pilot selected an airport which was ahead, and along the intended route. However, there were numerous other airports which were closer, and could have been selected, but were not along the intended route.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.