# NTSB FTW98LA288: Piper PA-23-160, N4132P, Casper, WY, June 26, 1998 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: June 26, 1998, 15:00 local (21:00 UTC) - Place: Casper, WY - Coordinates: 42.860008, -106.76921 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.8600&lon=-106.7692&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report February 15, 2001 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 20664 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=FTW98LA288 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/20664/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98LA288 ## Probable cause The pilot's improper in-flight planning and decision making by selecting an inadequate landing area for an emergency landing when a suitable landing area was available. Factors were fuel exhaustion, inaccurate preflight planning, and lack of recent experience. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, cruise - fluid,fuel - exhaustion (contributing factor) - preflight planning/preparation - inaccurate, pilot in command (contributing factor) - in-flight planning/decision - inaccurate, pilot in command (contributing factor) - lack of certification, pilot in command - lack of recent experience, pilot in command (contributing factor) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - terrain condition - open field - terrain condition - rough/uneven (contributing factor) - terrain condition - roadway/highway - in-flight planning/decision - improper, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis While on a personal cross-country flight, the pilot spent time circumnavigating thunderstorms and experienced a complete loss of power due to fuel exhaustion. He conducted a forced landing in a field which was rough and uneven. There was a road beside the field which was suitable to use as a runway for his emergency landing. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to the underside of the fuselage during the forced landing. The pilot did not have a multiengine rating, was inexperienced in the aircraft, and his last biennial flight review was conducted in a single engine aircraft 17 years prior to the accident. ## Factual narrative On June 26, 1998, at 1500 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-23-160, N4132P, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing 18 miles north of Casper, Wyoming. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for this personal flight being conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91, and no flight plan was filed. The flight departed Watertown, South Dakota, at 1100 with a reported destination of Casper. According to the pilot, he spent a considerable amount of time avoiding thunderstorms en route and exhausted his fuel supply. The pilot said when both engines lost power, he conducted a forced landing in a field. Due to rough terrain both propellers were bent, an antenna was damaged on the underside of the aircraft, and structural damage was sustained to the underside of the fuselage. The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) inspector who went to the scene stated there was an unobstructed straight road beside the field where the pilot conducted his forced landing. According to the inspector, the road could have been used for the landing. According to the pilot's accident report, he did not receive a weather brief. He stated he checked the weather using the internet prior to departure from Watertown. According to FAA records, the pilot did not posses a multiengine rating. The pilot indicated the same in his report of the accident and, in addition, the pilot provided information that his last biennial flight review was March 11, 1982. According to the information supplied by the pilot, his total flight time was 400 hours. He said his flight time in make and model was 20 hours, all of which occurred in the last 30 days. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N4132P](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4132P-2018-01-19), registration cancelled 2018-01-19, S/N 23-1612, built 1959 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Piper PA-23-160 - Registry model: [Piper PA-23-160](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-23-160) (registry code 7102304) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 1612 - Airframe hours: 4000 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-B1A 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Joseph P. Bardouche - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, January 18, 1998, 38 hours before - Departed: ATY, WATERTOWN, SD - Destination: CPR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 55; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: left; flight hours: 400 total, 20 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 250° at 24 knots, gusting 36 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 75 °F - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg - Observed at: CPR, 18 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 19980626030939A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980626030939A), Jun 26, 1998: Piper PA23160, Casper, WY, Substantial damage. (.4)While on a personal cross-country flight, the pilot spent time circumnavigating thunderstorms and experienced a complete loss of power due to fuel… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.