- Date
- November 23, 1988, 12:45 local (17:45 UTC)
- Place
- Berlin, NJ
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4341TPiper PA-28-180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 25, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19881123051839A
- Case key
- 36340
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
Off airport landing in unsuitable terrain following a power loss due to fuel exhaustion in the selected tank with useable fuel in the other tank.
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 aircraft lost power after takeoff and the pilot attempted to return to the airport. He struck power lines on short final and lost control of the aircraft, striking a railroad embankment. A flight instructor who was on scene approximately a minute after the accident said the fuel selector was on an empty tank and useable fuel was in the other tank.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4341T
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7105214
- Airframe hours
- 6,544
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A3A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Diamond Carpet Marketers, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Earl. R Mccart/Lewis R Mccart
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- 19N · Berlin, NJ
- Airport
- 19N · Camden Co., runway 5, 3,100 × 45 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
- 37
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 280 total · 40 in this make and model · 220 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.