# NTSB SEA02LA132: Piper PA-28, N1248H, Burns, OR, July 16, 2002 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 16, 2002, 16:55 local (23:55 UTC) - Place: Burns, OR - Coordinates: 43.618331, -119.175003 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.6183&lon=-119.1750&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 8, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 55231 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=SEA02LA132 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55231/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55231 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/SEA02LA132 ## Probable cause The pilot’s improper decision to continue on en route into an area of forecast reduced visibility without sufficient fuel to divert to a suitable alternate airport, and his subsequent inadvertent exhaustion of the aircraft's fuel supply. Factors include reduced visibility due to forest fire smoke, and rough/uneven terrain at the location where the pilot found it necessary to make a forced landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, cruise - in-flight planning/decision - improper, pilot in command (cause) - fluid,fuel - exhaustion (cause) - weather condition - haze/smoke (contributing factor) - Forced landing, descent - emergency - Gear collapsed, landing - roll - terrain condition - rough/uneven (contributing factor) ## Analysis After departing Salt Lake City, the pilot ran into some rain showers and had to divert to the east of his planned route. After completing his weather diversion, he flew directly over Burns, Oregon, en route to his final destination of Bend, Oregon. Upon arriving in the area of Bend, the pilot was unable to locate the airport due to low visibility created by smoke from ongoing forest fires. He then attempted to contact someone on the common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) at Bend, but was unsuccessful. He also tried to contact the tower at Redmond, Oregon, but was unable to do so. Although he knew he was getting low on fuel, the pilot decided he should attempt to return to Burns because the visibility had been good there when he flew over it earlier. As he was approaching Burns from the west, the aircraft ran out of fuel, and the pilot was forced to make a power-off landing in an open field. Although the initial touchdown was successful, during the landing roll on the rough rocky terrain, the nose gear and one main gear collapsed. According to the pilot, during his preflight briefing with the FAA Flight Service Station in Salt Lake City, he had been advised that the smoke from the forest fires near Bend was restricting visibility, but he did not realize that the combination of the afternoon sun and the accumulated smoke would make it so hard to find features on the ground. ## Factual narrative On July 16, 2002, approximately 1655 Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-28, N1248H, experienced a gear collapse during the landing roll on rough terrain west of Burns, Oregon. The private pilot, who was the sole occupant, was not injured, but the aircraft, which is owned and operated by Monarch Air, of Addison, Texas, sustained substantial damage. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal cross-country flight, which departed Salt Lake City Municipal Airport #2 about four hours and twenty-five minutes earlier, was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. There was no report of an ELT activation. The aircraft had been on a VFR flight plan. According to the pilot, after departing Salt Lake City, he ran into some rain showers and had to divert to the east of his planned route. After completing his weather diversion, he flew directly over Burns, Oregon, en route to his final destination of Bend, Oregon. Upon arriving in the area of Bend, the pilot was unable to locate the airport due to low visibility created by smoke from ongoing forest fires. He then attempted to contact someone on the common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) at Bend, but was unsuccessful. He also tried to contact the tower at Redmond, Oregon, but was unable to do so. Although he knew he was getting low on fuel, the pilot decided he should attempt to return to Burns because the visibility had been good there when he flew over it earlier. As he was approaching Burns from the west, the aircraft ran out of fuel, and the pilot was forced to make a power-off landing in an open field. Although the initial touchdown was successful, during the landing roll on the rough rocky terrain, the nose gear and one main gear collapsed. According to the pilot, during his preflight briefing with the FAA Flight Service Station in Salt Lake City, he had been advised that the smoke from the forest fires near Bend was restricting visibility, but he did not realize that the combination of the afternoon sun and the accumulated smoke would make it so hard to find features on the ground. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1248H](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N1248H-2018-01-11), registration cancelled 2018-01-11, S/N 28-7790299 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Piper PA-28 - Registry model: [Piper PA-28-181](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-181) (registry code 7102807) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 7716010 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-D3G 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Monarch Air - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: U42, Salt Lake City, UT - Destination: S07, Bend, OR - Flight plan: VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 44; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; seat: left; flight hours: 120 total, 100 in this make and model, 90 in the last 90 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 200° at 5 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 93 °F ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 30, 2002, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=55231. 408 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 408 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40463067&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Master.PDF From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.