Cessna 172G N3908L

Summary

On 28 November 1997 at about 21:20 local time, a Cessna 172G registered N3908L was involved in an accident near Hazel Green, Alabama, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

28 November 1997 at 21:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Hazel Green, Alabama, United States

Nearest airport

Stephens Airfield

Coordinates

34.9197, -86.5593

Aircraft

Cessna 172G

Registration

N3908L

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA98LA036

1 person was seriously injured.

the pilot's miscalculating the aircraft's fuel consumption for the flight, resulting in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. 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 pilot stated he remembered nothing about the day of or the flight that resulted in the accident. The aircraft was observed in flight with the propeller stopped just before impact with trees. All components of the airframe and engine were postcrash tested negatively for malfunction or failure. Fuel was tested negatively for water content. The fuel tanks were not ruptured, and there was no odor of fuel at the crash site. Evidence in the aircraft and statements by the pilot's friends indicate the pilot planned to change the aircraft's fuel selector valve after landing. The aircraft type-certificate data sheets state that of the 39 gallons that can be onloaded, 3 gallons must be considered unusable. Something less than 2 gallons was actually removed from the total fuel system.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.