- Date
- December 2, 1992, 18:14 local (Dec 3, 1992, 02:14 UTC)
- Place
- Lost Hills, CA
- Injuries
- 3 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N5405SPiper PA-28-140
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report August 30, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921202048739A
- Case key
- 27878
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
The pilot's poor preflight planning/preparation, poor fuel consumption calculations, and delay in effecting any remedial action. Contributing to this accident was the pilot inadvertently becoming Lost/disoriented and the dark night.
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 flight departed with 10 gallons of fuel toward a mountainous area during a dark night. While enroute the pilot became Lost and disoriented. He contacted the TRACON and reported a low fuel state. The controller vectored the flight to the nearest airport. The pilot could not identify the airport or turn on the runway lights while circling over the airport. In an attempt to identify the airport, the pilot descended toward the airport. During the descent the airplane struck some power lines. There was no post impact fire although the two passengers sustained burns on their arms from the severed power lines. The investigation revealed that the runway lights activated normally by clicking the microphone using the common traffic advisory frequency as indicated in the airport/facility directory.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5405S
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-140
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7125110
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Hixson, Robert W.
- Registered owner
- Hixson, Robert W.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- 010 · Dinuba, CA
- Destination
- L52 · Oceano, CA
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
- 35
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 450 total · 200 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 20° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 14,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 57 °F, dew point 34 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BFL, 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.