Piper PA-28-151 N41535

Summary

On 10 November 2007 at about 22:00 local time, a Piper PA-28-151 registered N41535 was involved in an accident near Sacramento, Kentucky, United States. One person was 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

10 November 2007 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Sacramento, Kentucky, United States

Nearest airport

David Lowe Airport (80KY)

Coordinates

37.3961, -87.2356

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-151

Registration

N41535

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Sacramento → Owensboro

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC08LA034

Nobody was injured.

A total loss of engine power during initial climb for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that he performed a preflight inspection of the airplane, which included "sumping" the fuel tanks, and no contamination was observed in the fuel samples. The airplane had recently been fueled to the "tabs," and approximately 17 gallons of 100 low lead aviation gasoline was in both fuel tanks during the accident takeoff. No discrepancies were noted during engine start, taxi, and run-up. During the initial climb, the engine lost all power about 60 feet above ground level, and the pilot performed a forced landing into a soybean field. According to his written statement, the pilot reported that the fuel selector was positioned to the right main fuel tank during the accident takeoff, and he moved it to the off position after the accident. After the accident, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector observed the fuel selector in the off position, and it was moved to the right fuel tank position. The engine then started and ran continuously up to 2,300 rpm. When the FAA inspector interviewed the pilot, the pilot stated that he was "pretty sure" and that he "thought so" when asked twice about having the fuel selector positioned to the right fuel tank during the accident takeoff.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.