- Date
- August 12, 1990, 12:05 local (20:05 UTC)
- Place
- Anchorage, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N7087BPiper PA-18
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 12, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19900812033429A
- Case key
- 5304
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 flight instructor ran the right tank dry. Contributing to the accident were improper in-flight planning and decisions.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The flight instructor and student pilot made an emergency landing in a residential area after an engine failure. A complete engine examination revealed no mechanical malfunction or failures. The examination of the fuel tanks revealed nothing that would contribute to an engine failure. Inspection of the fuel tanks revealed that there was fuel in the left tank but no fuel in the right tank. The flight instructor stated that the engine quit in-flight shortly after switching fuel tanks.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7087B
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 185169
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Richard Dowling
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 19, 1989 · 20 hours before
- Airport
- MRJ · Merrill
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 45
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 4,352 total · 1,200 in this make and model · 4,290 as pilot in command · 8 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 60 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MRI, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.