- Date
- August 20, 1985, 14:45 local (19:45 UTC)
- Place
- Farmerville, LA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N8050PPiper PA-24-250
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850820039639A
- Case key
- 21831
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 plt took off and started his climbout with the fuel selector on a fuel tank which was virtually empty. The eng stopped reaching an alt of 200 feet AGL. The plt made forced landing in trees. There was an ample supply of fuel (about 70 gallons) distributed between the other three fuel tanks; however, there was not adequate time to switch the selector valve and get a restart before impact occurred.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8050P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-3296
- Airframe hours
- 2,600
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-A1A5, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Archie Piten
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- F87 · Farmerville, LA
- Destination
- F89 · Winnsboro, LA
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
- 38
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 840 total · 30 in this make and model · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 88 °F, dew point 75 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MLU, 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.
Other investigations on N8050P · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.