- Date
- May 6, 1985, 16:20 local (22:20 UTC)
- Place
- Tucumcari, NM
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N3067LPiper PA-28-181
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850506018359A
- Case key
- 16673
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 acft contacted a tree and a ditch during a forced landing after a loss of pwr due to fuel exhaustion. The right fuel gage reportedly indicated 6-8 gallons of fuel in the right tank when 50 miles from Tucumcari municipal arpt. The plt reported he was 'approximately ten minutes out,' when he noticed a sudden loss of fuel on the fuel gage and the fuel pressure dropped to 'nil' followed by a total loss of pwr. The acft was landed in a field aprx 1 1/2 miles short of the rwy. Total time of the flt was 4 hrs 15 minutes. The acft usable fuel capacity is 48 gallons and the operating manual states the acft uses aprx 10 gph in cruise flt.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3067L
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-181
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7990262
- Airframe hours
- 1,863
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4M, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Kimo C. Van Courtney
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- Fort Smith, AR
- Destination
- TCC · Tucumcari, NM
- Flight plan
- VFR
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 58
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 220 total · 116 in this make and model · 158 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 79 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.