- Date
- August 2, 2023, 15:59 local (20:59 UTC)
- Place
- Rosenberg, TX
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N38483Piper PA-28-181
- Defining event
- Enroute: Fuel exhaustion
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20230802011849A
- Case key
- 192784
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 student pilot’s improper fuel management that resulted in fuel exhaustion, a total loss of engine power, and a subsequent forced landing and landing overrun at an alternate airport.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The student pilot stated that in preparation for his solo cross-country flight, he reviewed his flight planning with his flight instructor. He said he flew to the destination airport, where he performed one approach and landing, followed by flight maneuvers north of the airport, and then landed. The pilot shut the airplane down to use the restroom. Prior to departure from the destination airport, he did not visually check the airplane fuel level through the fuel filler ports. During the return flight, he visually observed the fuel quantity and was decreasing rapidly, and he decided to land at an alternate airport. During the approach to the alternate airport, the engine sputtered and lost power. He landed the airplane with a tailwind and strongly applied the brakes to try to slow the airplane down as soon as possible. The airplane overran the runway and impacted a fence and construction equipment that resulted in substantial damage to both wings. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no useable fuel in the airplane fuel tanks.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N38483
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-181
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7790556
- Built
- 1977
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4M, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Kdrd Holdings LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 14, 2023 · 12,546.5 hours before
- Departed
- 5C1 · San Antonio, TX
- Destination
- LVJ · Houston, TX
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- T54 · Lane Airpark, runway 13, 3,020 × 35 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Stall warning system
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
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Student
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter
- Medical
- Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 55.7 total · 10.8 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 100 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.98 inHg
- Observed at
- SGR, 9 nm away
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 30, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.1 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.