# Accident 20031011032699A: Aviat PITTSS2B, Santa Teresa, NM, October 11, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 11, 2003, 08:35 local time
- Place: Santa Teresa, NM
- Airport: Santa Teresa Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 31.8808° N, 106.7047° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.8808&lon=-106.7047&mi=10
- Aircraft: N331DM (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: AVIAT PITTSS2B
- Reported engine: LYC AEIO540*
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 28,500 total, 50 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB DEN04LA007](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN04LA007) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20031011032699A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON OCTOBER 11, 2003, AT 0835 MDT, AN AVIAT PITTS S2B, N331DM, REGISTERED TO LAW OFFICE OF ^PRIVACY DATA OM^, PC, LOST POWER WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT DURING AN INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME AND NO VFR FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED. THE AIRCRAFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED BUT THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT SANTA TERESA, NEW MEXICO, ON OCTOBER 11, 2003, AT 0800 MDT. SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE ACCIDENT WAS A RESULT OF FUEL EXHAUSTION.

## 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 DEN04LA007](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN04LA007), Oct 11, 2003: Aviat Pitts S2B (N331DM), Santa Teresa, NM, substantial damage. Probable cause: the instructor's improper in-flight planning/decision making and fuel mismanagement which resulted in fuel starvation/exhaustion, the loss of engine power and the subsequent forced landing.…

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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