- Date
- September 19, 1989, 23:40 local (Sep 20, 1989, 06:40 UTC)
- Place
- Winkelman, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N3015ZPiper PA-22
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890919035659A
- Case key
- 26504
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
Improper in-flight planning/decision by the pilot, after he became lost/disoriented, which resulted in fuel exhaustion, before he was able to complete a precautionary landing. Factors related to the accident were: darkness, the pilot's lack of visual cues at night, the aircraft's low fuel level, and the terrain condition (high vegetation/bushes) in the emergency landing area.
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 rprtd that during a night flt, he had difficulty finding his destination. Subsequently, his fuel decreased & he elected to land on a road. During the apch to land, the airplane ran out of fuel. After touchdown, it hit a bush & nosed over.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3015Z
- Reported as
- Piper PA-22
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 226966
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Forsyth, Robert E.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- Kingman, AZ
- Destination
- Wilcox, AZ
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 59
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 210 total · 46 in this make and model · 142 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.