- Date
- April 8, 1982, 17:30 local (22:30 UTC)
- Place
- Brook Haven, MS
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N6444BCessna 172
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 8, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820408009569A
- Case key
- 70035
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 pilot visually checked the fuel level before takeoff and estimated that he had 15 to 16 gallons remaining. Since the flight was planned for 30 to 45 minutes, no fuel was added. However, after flying for 30 to 35 minutes, the engine lost power. The pilot landed in a pasture, but was forced to steer the aircraft toward trees to avoid hitting cows. The plane struck two trees and a fence and was substantially damaged. An investigation revealed there was only traces of fuel remaining in the fuel tanks. The pilot suspected that fuel had drained from the aircraft. Some beads of fuel were present on the gascolator drain, but there was no evidence of a large fuel leak. A check of the fuel gauges revealed that the right gauge indicated the tank was empty, but the left gauge was reading between 1/4 full and empty.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6444B
- Reported as
- Cessna 172
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 29644
- Airframe hours
- 2,800
- Engine
- Continental O-300, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Pete Stanley (Also William Sta
- Registered owner
- Pete Stanley (Also William Sta
- Departed
- Brook Haven, MS
- Destination
- Brook Haven, MS
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
- 52
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 8,000 total · 32 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Temperature
- 158 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.