- Date
- December 27, 1989, 08:20 local (14:20 UTC)
- Place
- Selmer, TN
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N2443KPiper PA-38-112
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 26, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891227053359A
- Case key
- 8195
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 failure of the instructor to place the engine mixture control in the rich position prior to beginning traffic pattern maneuvers. As a result, the engine quit because of the lean fuel mixture at the high power setting required for the go-around and downwind leg.
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 instructor & private rated student were practicing touch & go landings. On the third approach, abeam the numbers on downwind leg, the engine quit. The student was told to fly toward the runway while the instructor tried to restart the engine, but without success. A forced landing was made in a field. The nose landing gear collapsed & one main landing gear was torn away during the landing roll. An FAA inspector examined the engine later. He reported that the spark plug electrodes were white in color. The engine was then operated with a very lean mixture setting. Afterwards the spark plug electrodes had the same white coloration.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2443K
- Reported as
- Piper PA-38-112
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 38-79A0637
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-C2C, 112 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Bolivar Aviaiton Sales, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- M08 · Bolivar, TN
- Airport
- SZY · Sibley, runway 17, 4,300 × 75 ft, macadam
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
- 20
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 520 total · 80 in this make and model · 351 as pilot in command · 250 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MKL, 25 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.