- Date
- November 5, 1987, 04:20 local (10:20 UTC)
- Place
- Bonne Terre, MO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8303YPiper PA-28-161
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/bright
- Status
- Completed · report February 14, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19871105062229A
- Case key
- 34519
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 the eng lost pwr fm fuel exhaustion as he was cruising at ngt on a x-country flt at 6500' MSL. He declaredan emerg with st louis apch & reqd vectors to the nearest arpt. The controller (ctlr) provided vectors to the Bonne Terre arpt which was about 7 mi away, but it had neither rwy lgts nor a rotating beacon. The plt was unable to locate the arpt & elected to make a ngt lndg on a roadway. As he was lndg, there was a left curve in the roadway. While lndg in a left bank over the curved road, the left wing contacted the gnd & the acft gnd looped & was damaged. The acdnt occurred about 1 mi fm the unlighted arpt. An investigation revealed there was a lighted arpt about the same distance fm where the eng lost power. The plt stated that drg a preflt, he noted the fuel was at/near the bottom of the sleeves (tabs). He thought the tanks were inside the wing skin & that the tabs represented a full fuel lvl, when actually the fuel tanks were about 1-1/2 inch below the full lvl. Also, he said he encountered unexpected headwinds drg the flt.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8303Y
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-161
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 288116095
- Airframe hours
- 3,531
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-DG3, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Professional Aeronautics Inc.
- Registered owner
- Lee W Cash
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 18, 1987 · 96 hours before
- Departed
- 08A · Wetumpka, AL
- Destination
- SUS · St. Louis, MO
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- 77K · Bonne Terre, runway 32, 2,800 × 50 ft, asphalt
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
- 51
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 152 total · 109 in this make and model · 115 as pilot in command · 16 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/bright
- Wind
- 320° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 34 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SUS, 45 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.