- Date
- October 4, 1989, 13:35 local (17:35 UTC)
- Place
- Beaver Falls, PA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N123DAChampion 7ECA
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891004038659A
- Case key
- 36562
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 right fuel vent became clogged allowing the left fuel tank to become exhausted. In addition, the pilot failed to adequately monitor the fuel supply in each 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
During a pipeline patrol flight at 500 feet the engine quit and the pilot landed in a wooded area in hilly terrain. The left tank was found empty & the right tank was full. The airplane is not equipped with a fuel selector valve. The right tank fuel vent check valve held a gummy substance in the flipper valve seat area. The fuel tank filler caps are not vented. Fuel gauges for each tank are located on the inboard side of each fuel tank.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N123DA
- Reported as
- Champion 7ECA
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 798-71
- Airframe hours
- 10,500
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-C1, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial observation · Part 91
- Registered owner
- John M. Nolan
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 17, 1989 · 800 hours before
- Departed
- Freemont, OH
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
- 62
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 40,800 total · 10,000 in this make and model · 40,000 as pilot in command · 240 in the last 90 days · 80 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 64 °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.