Piper PA-28C-235 N9487W

Summary

On 22 February 2009 at about 20:00 local time, a Piper PA-28C-235 registered N9487W, operated by 9487W LLC, was involved in an accident near Falcon, Colorado, United States. 2 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

22 February 2009 at 20:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Falcon, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Meadow Lake (00V)

Coordinates

38.9456, -104.5697

Aircraft

Piper PA-28C-235

Registration

N9487W

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

9487W LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Falcon → Falcon

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN09LA171

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the pilot's inadequate fuel management.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot said that he preflighted the airplane and noted the following fuel gauge indications: Left tip tank, 6 gallons (17 gallon capacity); left main tank, 12-15 gallons (25 gallon capacity); right main tank, 5-10 gallons (25 gallon capacity); right tip tank, empty (17 gallon capacity). The pilot and a friend flew for about 1.5 hours then returned to the airport. While on short final approach, the engine lost power. The airplane touched down in a field 200 to 300 feet short of the runway and struck a barbed wire fence. The airplane sustained leading edge damage to both wings and damage to the left main tank. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector examined the airplane and reported finding the fuel selector positioned on the left main fuel tank. He found fuel in the fuel selector drain and in the left main fuel tank drain. There was a negligible amount of fuel in the right main tank fuel drain. The left wing tip tank contained approximately 3 to 5 gallons, and the right wing tip tank contained approximately 2 to 4 gallons. With the fuel selector positioned on the left main tank, the engine was started and allowed to run for approximately 5 minutes. The fuel selector was then positioned on the left wing tip tank and the engine was allowed to run for another 5 minutes. The fuel selector was then positioned on the right wing tip tank, and the engine continued to run. The fuel selector was positioned on the right main tank and approximately one to two minutes later the engine stopped running. According to a Piper Aircraft Company spokesman, the airplane's engine, operating at 7000 feet mean sea level and 75 percent power, will consume about 14 gallons per hour.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.