- Date
- December 26, 1991, 09:13 local (14:13 UTC)
- Place
- Stratford, CT
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N9423PPiper PA-24-260C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 27, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19911226057279A
- Case key
- 37122
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
Water/ice in the fuel system, which resulted in fuel starvation and a loss of engine power. Factors related to the accident were: freezing temperatures and inadequate pre-flight preparation by the pilot.
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
Shortly after takeoff, the pilot radioed that he had a problem. ATC cleared him to land on any runway. The pilot said, '. . . I don't think I can make that (airport), I see the highway below.' The airplane landed at an angle to the southbound lanes of interstate highway I-95 and hit a guard rail and the center cement barriers. Examination of the wreckage revealed that the fuel selector was positioned to the left main fuel tank. Pieces of ice were removed from the left main fuel tank, the fuel selector valve, and the fuel strainer sediment bowl. The airplane was last refueled on 10/27/91, with 53.9 gallons of 100 octane fuel. There was no record found to indicate the airplane had been flown since the last refueling on that date.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9423P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-260C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 244929
- Airframe hours
- 5,756
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-N1A5, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Stanley Postyn, doing business as Stanco Ltd.
- Registered owner
- Stanley Postyn
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 17, 1991 · 83 hours before
- Destination
- OXC · Oxford, CT
- Airport
- BDR · Sikorsky Memorial, runway 29, 4,700 × 150 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
- 47
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,355 total · 716 in this make and model · 1,300 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 19 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.