- Date
- September 23, 2012, 14:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- Fairbanks, AK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4483MPiper PA-12
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Loss of engine power (total)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 19, 2012
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20120923023269A
- Case key
- 85164
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s improper fuel management, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The airplane was in level cruise flight when the engine lost power, resulting in an off-airport emergency landing. During the emergency landing, the airplane nosed over and sustained substantial damage to the rudder. The pilot stated that he had exhausted all the fuel from the right tank. When the engine lost power, he switched to the left fuel tank but could not restart the engine.
Factual narrative
The pilot was in level cruise flight when the airplane’s engine lost power, resulting in an off-airport emergency landing. During the emergency landing, the airplane nosed over, and sustained substantial damage to the rudder. The pilot stated that he had exhausted all the fuel out of the right tank. When the engine lost power, he switched to the left fuel tank, but could not restart the engine.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4483M
- Reported as
- Piper PA-12
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 12-3436
- Airframe hours
- 2,914
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235 SERIES, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Lorring David W
- Registered owner
- Lorring David W
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 20, 2012
- Departed
- Fairbanks, AK
- Destination
- AK7 · Fairbanks, AK
- Airport
- AK7 · Gold King
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 59
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2012
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 16,000 total · 2,000 in this make and model · 400 in the last 90 days · 140 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Temperature
- 61 °F
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 27, 2012, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 729 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.