Piper PA32 N3756W

Summary

On 4 March 2018 at about 21:30 local time, a Piper PA32 registered N3756W was involved in an accident near Camas, Washington, 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

4 March 2018 at 21:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Camas, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Grove Field (1W1)

Coordinates

45.5850, -122.3883

Aircraft

Piper PA32

Registration

N3756W

Category

Airplane

Year built

1966

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Salem → Camas

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA184

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadequate inflight fuel management and his failure to switch to a fuel tank with adequate fuel, which resulted in fuel starvation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, before departure, he estimated that the right tip fuel tank was three-quarters full (about 14 gallons), and each main fuel tank had about 20 gallons of fuel. The pilot reported that, during cruise, he decided to use the right tip fuel tank, even though he was aware that the right tip fuel tank gauge was inoperative. He added that, after about 25-30 minutes, he performed various stall maneuvers before returning to the departure airport to land. The pilot noticed a reduction in engine power and a drop in the manifold pressure and concluded that the airplane would not be able to return to the airport, so he continued a left turn toward a farm field. The pilot began to troubleshoot for carburetor ice to no avail. The airplane landed in the farm field and impacted a ditch. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the engine mounts. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot added that, during a postaccident examination, it was revealed that the right tip fuel tank was dry and "that the engine lost power due to fuel starvation."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.