- Date
- March 29, 1991, 17:45 local (Mar 30, 1991, 01:45 UTC)
- Place
- Jean, NV
- Injuries
- 2 minor, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N99255Piper PA-23-250
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 3, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910329008059A
- Case key
- 27150
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
Fuel starvation due to the improper fuel management (positioning of the fuel selector) by the pilot, and his improper emergency procedures. The pilot's lack of experience in this make and model of aircraft was a related factor.
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
After about 1 hour and thirty minutes of flight, a total loss of power occurred in the left engine. While the pilot was diagnosing the problem, the right engine lost power. The pilot did not switch the fuel tank selectors to the outboard tanks, and executed an emergency landing on the desert terrain. During the landing roll, the airplane collided with a fence and nosed over. An examination disclosed that the outboard fuel tanks contained fuel; the inboard fuel tanks were empty.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N99255
- Reported as
- Piper PA-23-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 27543
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-B1A5, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Michael T. Hagwood
- Registered owner
- Michael T. Hagwood
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- L39 · Ramona, CA
- Destination
- LAS · Las Vegas, NV
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
- 20
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 176 total · 21 in this make and model · 102 as pilot in command · 20 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 70° at 11 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Observed at
- LAS, 19 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.