Piper PA-38-112 N4276E

Summary

On 8 February 2000 at about 12:30 local time, a Piper PA-38-112 registered N4276E was involved in an accident near Alma, Michigan, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 February 2000 at 12:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Alma, Michigan, United States

Coordinates

43.3704, -84.6508

Aircraft

Piper PA-38-112

Registration

N4276E

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sault Ste Marie → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI00LA064

1 person had minor injuries.

the pilot's inadequate fuel consumption calculation. Factors were the rough terrain, the fence and the exhaustion of the fuel supply.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane engine lost power and the pilot executed a forced landing. The pilot stated that he had flown the aircraft on the previous day and did not refuel the aircraft prior to the accident flight. The pilot estimated the round trip distance to be about 425 miles, the cruise speed to be 100 miles per hour, and the aircraft fuel consumption to be 7.5 to 8.5 gallons per hour. According to the written statement, 'In calculating his [the pilot's] fuel consumption he [the pilot] determined that he [the pilot] would not have had enough fuel.' The pilot said that he executed the forced landing in a snow-covered field and the airplane nosed over after striking a fence line. He also said that he 'did not plan total fuel for flight and pre flight warm up.' On scene examination of the aircraft revealed no preexisting anomalies with respect to the aircraft, it's engine or systems. No fuel was found in the line from the fuel pump to the carburetor. No fuel was found in any of the fuel tanks and no fuel stains were found on the ground surrounding the aircraft.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.