Piper PA-38-112 N598Z

Summary

On 19 January 1996 at about 22:00 local time, a Piper PA-38-112 registered N598Z, operated by Flight Training Systems, Inc., was involved in an accident near Falfurrias, Texas, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

19 January 1996 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Falfurrias, Texas, United States

Coordinates

27.2200, -98.1396

Aircraft

Piper PA-38-112

Registration

N598Z

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Flight Training Systems, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Alice → Brownsville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW96LA105

Nobody was injured.

fuel starvation due to the pilot's improper positioning of the fuel selector. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot departed Brownsville, Texas for a solo cross-country flight that took him to Corpus Christi, Texas for 'touch and go's', and then to Rockport, Texas for a full-stop landing. The aircraft was refueled in Rockport and the flight continued to Alice, Texas for a full-stop landing. Approximately 25 minutes into the final leg of the cross-country flight from Alice to Brownsville, the engine lost power. When emergency procedures to restore engine power were unsuccessful, a forced landing was made into a field with soft soil. Examination of the aircraft revealed that the left fuel tank was empty and the right tank was full. The fuel selector was found in the left position.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.