Piper PA-28-235 N8925W

Summary

On 14 December 2002 at about 08:30 local time, a Piper PA-28-235 registered N8925W was involved in an accident near Bryson, Texas, 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 December 2002 at 08:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Bryson, Texas, United States

Coordinates

33.1089, -98.5556

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-235

Registration

N8925W

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Shreveport → Graham

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

FTW03LA060

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's inadequate inflight planning and decision which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. The pilot's failure to refuel the airplane and dark night conditions were contributing factors.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that prior to the night VFR flight, the airplane's left and right main fuel tanks were 1/2 full, the right tip tank was 1/2 full, and the left tip tank was empty. The pilot did not refuel the airplane prior to departure. During the return flight, the pilot switched fuel tanks approximately every 20 to 30 minutes, and the airplane experienced a 20 to 25 knot headwind. Approximately 8 nautical miles east of the destination, the engine lost power, and the pilot initiated a forced landing to a field. A passenger, who was seated in the right front seat, stated that after the engine lost power, the pilot "...tried the other 3 tanks for fuel and could not find any." There was no evidence of fuel found at the accident site.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.