Piper PA-31-310 N151JP
27 September 1996 · Wassau Island, Georgia, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 27 September 1996 at about 13:35 local time, a Piper PA-31-310 registered N151JP was involved in an accident near Wassau Island, Georgia, United States. 3 people were 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.
The record
- Date
- at 13:35
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Wassau Island, Georgia, United States
- Coordinates
- 32.0106, -80.8494
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-310
- Registration
- N151JP
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Sarasota → Hilton Head
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- MIA96LA234
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Probable cause
the pilot's inadequate preflight and planning which resulted in fuel exhaustion.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The flight was airborne for about 1 hour and 40 minutes, when the pilot reported to Approach Control that the airplane's engines lost power. The pilot stated, 'the right engine quit, shortly thereafter the left engine quit.' ATC gave the pilot vectors to an airport. The pilot said that after getting the airport in sight, 'I thought it [was] too far to make a safe landing,' and elected to land on the beach. In addition, the pilot stated that the 'fuel gauges [were] giving faulty readings.' The pilot did not mention the amount of fuel onboard at the time the engines failed, or if the airplane was serviced with fuel before departure. One of the passengers stated that after the engines failed the pilot 'tried many tricks to get down...switched fuel tanks, pumps on/off etc...to no avail.' When the FAA arrived at the wreckage they found no fuel in the fuel tanks, and none of the fuel tanks had been breached, nor was there any signs of fuel leakage.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Piper PA-31 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Sep 1996 | Piper PA-31 | Janesville, Wisconsin, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Jan 1996 | Piper PA-31-350 | Zionsville, Indiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 20 Oct 1996 | Piper PA-31-350 | Eel River Cross, Canada | JPS Corp | Fatal | 8 |
| 13 Nov 1996 | Piper PA-31-310 | Nairobi, Kenya | Kissimayu Aviation | Fatal | 8 |
| 5 Dec 1996 | Piper PA-31 | Nunapitchuk, Alaska, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 24 Jul 1996 | Piper PA-31-350 | Kneeland, California, United States | Union Flights | Minor injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Apr 1996 | Maule M-5 | Plains, Georgia, United States | Robert D. Campbell | Minor injuries | - |
| 18 Apr 1996 | Cessna 310D | Palmetto, Georgia, United States | Bruce D. Willis | No injuries | - |
| 18 Apr 1996 | Grumman G-164A | Edison, Georgia, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 20 May 1996 | Cessna 172D | Vilarica, Georgia, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 31 May 1996 | Piper PA-28-140 | Barbour Island, Georgia, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 14 Jan 1996 | Cessna 150G | Social Circle, Georgia, United States | Dixie Jet Service | Fatal | 1 |