- Date
- April 22, 1990, 16:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Johnson City, TN
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N3980VCessna 170
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900422010369A
- Case key
- 8233
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/mechanic's inadequate preflight inspection of the aircraft fuel system.
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 engine quit after take off & a forced landing was made in a field. One main gear collapsed during landing roll on the rough ground. Owner of the acft was a comm. Pilot/a&p/ia. He said water was found in the carburetor after the accident. He also said the acft had sat about 90 days after fuel had been placed in the tanks. On the ground the low point of the tanks would prevent water migrating to the fuel strainer. Threaded drain plugs are in the tanks which the pilot indicated that he did not remove before the flight was attempted.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3980V
- Reported as
- Cessna 170
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18299
- Engine
- Continental O-300A, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bernath, Michael J.
- Registered owner
- Unknown
- Airport
- 0A4 · Johnson City, runway 4, 3,000 × 50 ft, asphalt
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
- 34
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Flight hours
- 2,300 total · 75 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N3980V · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.