Piper PA-32R N8451E
8 July 1999 · Fargo, North Dakota, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 8 July 1999 at about 15:15 local time, a Piper PA-32R registered N8451E was involved in an accident near Fargo, North Dakota, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 15:15
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Fargo, North Dakota, United States
- Coordinates
- 46.9293, -96.8301
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32R
- Registration
- N8451E
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Des Moines → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CHI99LA219
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Probable cause
fuel starvation due to the pilot's fuel mismanagement and the pilot's misjudgment of the landing flare.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot reported the airplane had 70 gallons of fuel (3.5 hours) on board at departure. The flight lasted approximately 3.0 hours. The pilot reported that during the pre-landing checklist, the left fuel gauge indicated 10 to 11 gallons when the engine quit. The pilot switched the fuel selector to the right fuel tank that indicated 8 gallons, but switched the fuel selector back to the left tank since the left fuel gauge indicated more fuel. An engine restart was attempted, but it would not start. The pilot flared several feet high, the stall warning horn sounded, and the airplane landed hard. The inspection of the airplane revealed that the left fuel tank contained .75 gallons of fuel. The right fuel tank was compromised during landing. The fuel gauges were checked by putting 5 gallons of fuel in the left fuel tank and 5 gallons of fuel in the repaired right fuel tank. The right fuel gauge read correctly. The left fuel gauge read 3 gallons. The pilot reported that the left fuel gauge had a history of reading inaccurately on an intermittent basis since 1996. The airplane's listed unusable fuel was 5 gallons.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Piper PA-32R accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jul 1999 | Piper PA-32R-301T | Magdalena, New Mexico, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 5 Apr 1999 | Piper PA-32R | Fairbanks, Alaska, United States | Bellair, Inc. | Minor injuries | - |
| 4 Apr 1999 | Piper PA-32R-301 | Warner Springs, California, United States | - | Fatal | 4 |
| 17 Jul 1999 | Piper PA-32R-301 | Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 21 Feb 1999 | Piper PA 32R-301 | Dulles, Virginia, United States | - | Fatal | - |
| 28 May 1999 | Piper PA-32R-300 | Valley Springs, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jul 1999 | Piper PA-25-235 | McVille, North Dakota, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 24 Jul 1999 | Air Tractor 401B | McCanna, North Dakota, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 11 Nov 1999 | Shaffer EVANS VOLKSPLANE | Stanley, North Dakota, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 12 Dec 1999 | McCarty WITTMAN W-8 TAILWIND | Jamestown, North Dakota, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 26 Jun 1999 | Beechcraft C-23 | Mandan, North Dakota, United States | Aberdeen Flying Club, Inc. | Fatal | 1 |
| 25 May 1999 | Grumman-Schweizer G-164B | Buxton, North Dakota, United States | Central Valley Aviation | No injuries | - |