Piper PA28R-180 N4679J

Summary

On 28 February 1998 at about 00:04 local time, a Piper PA28R-180 registered N4679J was involved in an accident near Walbridge, Ohio, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

28 February 1998 at 00:04

Classification

Accident

Location

Walbridge, Ohio, United States

Nearest airport

Metcalf (TDZ)

Coordinates

41.6005, -83.3392

Aircraft

Piper PA28R-180

Registration

N4679J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sandusky → Lambertville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

NYC98LA069

1 person died.

the pilot's failure to refuel the aircraft resulting in fuel exhaustion, and his unsuccessful attempt to clear the wires. Contributing factors were the pilot's inadequate preflight, dark night conditions, and the wires.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

When the pilot preflighted the airplane, he observed the fuel in the right tank was even with the point where the bottom of the tank met the outboard vertical wall of the tank, which he estimated was 13 gallons. He observed the fuel in the left tank to be level with a point about 2 inches from the outboard vertical wall, along the bottom surface of the tank, which he estimated was 7-8 gallons. The pilot then flew a 30 minute flight stopping at Sandusky, Ohio, to pick up a passenger. During the second takeoff under dark night conditions, the pilot told the passenger to expect the engine to quit because he planned to run the fuel out of the left tank, and save the right tank for the approach. About 10 minutes after takeoff the engine quit. The pilot switched tanks and the engine restarted for a few minutes, and then quit again while the aircraft was climbing through 7,700 feet. The pilot performed a forced landing noticing wires in his flight path and 'dove sharply to avoid them' without success. The airplane struck a lower set of wires on approach to a field. Examination of the wreckage revealed the left and right fuel tanks were intact and contained about 1/2 quart of fuel each. The airplane's useable fuel capacity was 48 gallons, and according to range charts, the engine's fuel consumption rate was 8.1 gallons per hour at 70% power. The airplane had been flown about 5.91 hours since its last refueling.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.