# Accident 19971128035849A: Cessna 172G, Hazel Green, AL, November 28, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 28, 1997, 15:20 local time
- Place: Hazel Green, AL
- Airport: Stephens Airfield.
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Forced Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.9197° N, 86.5593° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.9197&lon=-86.5593&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3908L, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3908L-2013-08-19) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 172G (registry code 2072420, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172g) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental 0-300 series (registry code 17022, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-300-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 172G
- Reported engine: CONT O300D
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 345 total, 330 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB MIA98LA036](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98LA036) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19971128035849A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

ON NOVEMBER 28, 1997, ABOUT 1520 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA 172G, N3908L, REGISTERED TO A PRIVATE INDIVIDUAL, OPERATING A A 14 CFR 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT, CRASHED IN A WOODED AREA IN THE VICINITY OF STEPHENS AIRFIELD, A PRIVA AIRSTRIP NEAR HAZEL GREEN, ALABAMA. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, AN NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRCRAFT RECEIVED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE, ANT THE PRIVATE-RATED OILOT RECEIVED SERRIOUS INJURIES. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM THAT FIELD 1 HOUR BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. (-23) ON NOVEMBER 28, 1997, AT APPROXIMATELY 17:35 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA 172G, N3908L, COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND IN HAZEL GREEN, ALABAMA. THE AIRPLANE WAS BEING OPERATED UNDER TITLE 14 CFR PART 91 BY PHILLIP HOUSTON HENRIX, FAA CERTIFICATE NUMBER 418489806, WHO WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED, AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED. MR. S. SCOTT, WITNESS ^PRIVACY DATA OM^ STATED HESAW THE AIRCRAFT IN THE AIR, THE PROPELLER NOT TURNING, JUST BEFORE THE CRASH. FOUND WITHIN THE COCKPIT OF N3908L, AT THE ACCIDENT SCENE, WERE HAND TOOLS, A FUEL CONTROL VALVE, ACCESS PANELS, SCREWS, AND EMPTY TUNA CANS. LESS THAN TWO GALLONS OF FUEL WAS FOUND IN THE AIRCRAFT FUEL SYSTEM, AND THE CA                         RBURETOR HAD LESS THAN A HALF INCH OF FUEL IN THE FLOAT CHAMBER. THE AIRFRAME, ENGINE, AND CONTROLS WERE EXAMINED BY MYSELF (RODGER HOLMSTROM) FAA/ASI, J.B. SMITH FROM TCM AND R. VANDENHUL FROM CESSNA, WITH NO FINDINGS OTHER THAN LOW FUEL QUANTITIES.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB MIA98LA036](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA98LA036), Nov 28, 1997: Cessna 172G (N3908L), Hazel Green, AL, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's miscalculating the aircraft's fuel consumption for the flight, resulting in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

## Other reports on N3908L (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Accident 19780406005979A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19780406005979A), Apr 6, 1978: Cessna 172G (N3908L), Imperial, TX, Substantial damage

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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