- Date
- October 14, 1992, 23:50 local (Oct 15, 1992, 03:50 UTC)
- Place
- Newburyport, MA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2386LPiper PA-38-112
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report June 21, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921014042289A
- Case key
- 37259
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 inaccurate fuel consumption calculations and improper preflight planning, resulting in fuel exhaustion.
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
While in cruise flight, the pilot observed a low fuel quanity indication. He declared an emergency and requested vectors for landing, however, before reaching the airport, the engine quit. The pilot executed a forced landing on a highway, and during the landing roll the left wing struck a road sign. Examination of the airplane by the FAA inspector revealed 'less than one pint of fuel...from each sump.'
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2386L
- Reported as
- Piper PA-38-112
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 38-79A0690
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Beverly Flight Center, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Beverly Flight Center, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- B21 · Carrabassett, ME
- Destination
- BVY · Beverly, MA
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
- 33
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Invalid Medical for flight
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,725 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.