Piper PA 28-140 N55339

Summary

On 4 April 2017 at about 05:00 local time, a Piper PA 28-140 registered N55339 was involved in an accident near Whittier, California, 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

4 April 2017 at 05:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Whittier, California, United States

Coordinates

34.0181, -118.0381

Aircraft

Piper PA 28-140

Registration

N55339

Category

Airplane

Year built

1973

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Temecula → San Diego

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

WPR17LA092

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's impaired decision-making due to alcohol intoxication and his improper fuel management, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airline transport pilot reported to local law enforcement that, while he was flying at 1,000 ft, the airplane's engine experienced a total loss of power. He subsequently conducted a forced landing onto a large trucking yard. The landing site was about 61 miles northwest of the departure airport and in the opposite direction of his intended destination. Examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel selector was set to the right fuel tank. The master electrical switch was "ON," the right fuel gauge indicated empty, and the left fuel gauge indicated between 0 and 5 gallons. The fuel tanks were intact and undamaged. It is likely that the loss of engine power was the result of fuel starvation. Responding law enforcement officers reported that they could smell a strong odor of alcohol emitting from the pilot's breath/person. A formal blood test, which was administered about 5 hours after the accident, revealed that the pilot had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.16%. The effects of ethanol on aviators are generally well understood; it significantly impairs pilots' performance, even at very low levels. Federal Aviation Administration regulations prohibit any person from acting or attempting to act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft while having 0.040 gm/dl or more ethanol in the blood.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.