- Date
- July 8, 1992, 23:14 local (Jul 9, 1992, 03:14 UTC)
- Place
- Clay City, KY
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 2 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2857DPiper PA-28-181
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report August 26, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920708024369A
- Case key
- 11813
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
Fuel starvation for an undetermined reason. Darkness and trees in the emergency landing area were related factors.
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 reported the airplane was refueled to capacity of 50 gallons before departure. He stated he was 4.2 hours into the flight, descending from 8000 to 4000 feet MSL, when the engine sputtered several times, then lost power. According to the pilot, the left and right fuel gages indicated 4 and about 7 to 8 gallons, respectively, when the power loss occurred, and the fuel selector was set to the left tank. Attempts to restore power, including switching fuel tanks, were unsuccessful. The investigation did not disclose evidence of mechanical malfunction. The examination revealed the carburetor inlet fuel line was empty. The left wing separated during the crash impact sequence, came to rest in a tree, and was not accessible for examination. The amount of fuel in the right tank was undetermined. Performance charts indicated that with the pilot's reported power settings, the fuel flow should have been about 8.4 gallons per hour.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2857D
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-181
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7990500
- Airframe hours
- 1,438
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4M, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Lexington Flying Club, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Lexington Flying Club, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 10, 1991 · 85 hours before
- Departed
- PHF · Newport News, VA
- Destination
- LEX · Lexington, KY
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 45
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 608 total · 156 in this make and model · 558 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 210° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LEX, 30 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.