# Accident 20030719015969A: Boeing PT17, Hendersonville, NC, July 19, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 19, 2003, 13:53 local time
- Place: Hendersonville, NC
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.3301° N, 82.4705° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.3301&lon=-82.4705&mi=10
- Aircraft: N411BT, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N411BT) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Boeing PT-17 (registry code 1380136, https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-pt-17) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney R-985 series (registry code 52008, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r-985-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BOEING PT17
- Reported engine: PWA R985*
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 2,349 total, 1,100 in this make and model, 16 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL03LA118](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL03LA118) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030719015969A

## Narrative

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

(-23) PILOT HAD BEEN CONDUCTING GLIDER TOW OPERATIONS WITH HIS STEARMAN. AT ABOUT 1,000 AGL THE ENGINE QUIT. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT THE FOUR LANE HIGHWAY WAS THE BEST PLACE TO MAKE AN EMERGENCY LANDING. ON LANDING THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK TWO VEHICLES WHICH SPUN THE AIRCRAFT AND TORE THE RIGHT WING AND LANDING GEAR OFF. DURING INVESTIGATION, THERE WAS NO USABLE FUEL IN THE FUEL TANK (WHICH MAINTAINED ITS INTEGRITY), NOR WAS THERE FUEL IN THE FUEL LINE TO THE CARBURETOR. WHEN NTSB INFORMED THE PILOT THAT AN INSPECTION OF THE FUEL TANK REVEALED NO FUEL THE PILOT MADE THE STATEMENT THAT HE KNEW THAT AND THAT WAS WHY HE DIDN'T ATTEMPT A RESTART. THE PILOT ALSO TOLD A POLICE OFFICER THAT HE KIND OF GOT "WRAPPED UP IN THE MOMENT" AND MUST HAVE RUN OUT OF FUEL. IN ADDITION, WHILE IN THE HOSPITAL THE PILOT WAS OVERHEARD SAYING "I THINK I JUST RAN OUT OF GAS."

## 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 ATL03LA118](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL03LA118), Jul 19, 2003: Boeing PT-17 (N411BT), Hendersonville, NC, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate preflight planning/preparation of fuel required for the flight, resulting in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. A factor in the accident was pilot impairment…

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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