- Date
- May 4, 1990, 19:45 local (May 5, 1990, 00:45 UTC)
- Place
- Jacksonville, TX
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N2468GPiper PA-38-112
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 4, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900504014129A
- Case key
- 23021
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
A fuel exhaustion induced power loss during the initial climb after takeoff.
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
During initial climb after takeoff, at approximately 200 feet above the trees, a fuel exhaustion induced total power loss was experienced with the student pilot at the controls. The certified flight instructor (CFI) took control and attempted to turn 180 degrees to return to the downwind departure runway for a forced landing (the reported winds were 310 degrees at 11 knots). The aircraft struck the trees and made an uncontrolled descent to upsloping ground. Records indicate the aircraft had not been refueled, and had flown 3.5 hours since the previous fueling. There was no evidence of fuel spillage from the ruptured right tank; eight ounces of fuel was recovered from the intact left tank which was selected.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2468G
- Reported as
- Piper PA-38-112
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 38-79A0538
- Airframe hours
- 1,422
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 112 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Center Aviation
- Registered owner
- Mary K. Cowan
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 28, 1990 · 4 hours before
- Departed
- JSO
- Destination
- JSO
- Airport
- JSO · Jacksonville Cherokee Cty
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
- 24
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 1,400 total · 300 in this make and model · 1,400 as pilot in command · 100 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 11 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 5,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LFK, 46 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.