Piper PA-24-180 N6989P
29 May 2020 · Humboldt, Tennessee, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 29 May 2020 at about 16:30 local time, a Piper PA-24-180 registered N6989P was involved in an accident near Humboldt, Tennessee, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 16:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Humboldt, Tennessee, United States
- Nearest airport
- Humboldt Muni (M53)
- Coordinates
- 35.7936, -88.8786
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-180
- Registration
- N6989P
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 1960
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Humboldt → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- ERA20LA198
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Probable cause
A partial loss of engine power due to contaminated fuel.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
New avionics had just been installed in the airplane after a 5 week wait, and the purpose of the accident flight was for the pilot to test fly the airplane with the installing mechanic. The pilot performed an uneventful preflight inspection of the airplane and after liftoff there was a reduction in engine rpm before the engine lost power completely. The pilot preformed a forced landing to a golf course, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage and both wings. No mechanical anomalies were discovered during a postaccident examination of the engine that would have precluded normal operation; however, a fuel sample from the carburetor bowl displayed a cloudy (green/yellow) tint instead of the expected clear, blue coloring of aviation fuel. No other contamination was observed within the airplane’s fuel system and the source of the contamination could not be identified. Given this information, it is likely that the engine lost power due to contaminated fuel that migrated through the fuel system into the carburetor.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Piper PA-24 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Jan 2021 | Piper PA-24-250 | New Hudson, Michigan, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 8 Dec 2021 | Piper PA-24-250 | Delta, Colorado, United States | High Country Tree Gallery Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 7 Oct 2021 | Piper PA-24 | Loveland, Colorado, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 17 Mar 2019 | Piper PA 24 | Reno, Nevada, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 5 Jul 2019 | Piper PA-24-250 | Quetzaltenango, Guatemala | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 13 Oct 2021 | Piper PA-24-260 | Blairsville, Georgia, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
All 2,700 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Aug 2020 | Beechcraft 55 | Nashville, Tennessee, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 May 2020 | Ercoupe 415 | Rogersville, Tennessee, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 15 Feb 2020 | Rockwell 112 | Knoxville, Tennessee, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 11 Aug 2020 | Rotorsport Uk MTOSPORT 2017 | Springfield, Tennessee, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 11 May 2020 | Piper PA22 | Fayetteville, Tennessee, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 8 Sep 2020 | Piper PA28 | McMinnville, Tennessee, United States | Lebanon Flying Club | Fatal | 3 |