Hawker HUNTER T MK 8 N745WT

Summary

On 18 June 1998 at about 15:16 local time, a Hawker HUNTER T MK 8 registered N745WT, operated by Edward C. Stead, was involved in an accident near Manchester, New Hampshire, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

18 June 1998 at 15:16

Classification

Accident

Location

Manchester, New Hampshire, United States

Nearest airport

Manchester Airport (MHT)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Hawker HUNTER T MK 8

Registration

N745WT

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Edward C. Stead

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC98FA129

1 person died.

Fuel exhaustion, resulting from the pilot's reliance on an inaccurate fuel quantity indicating system. A factor in the pilot's death was his intentional delay of the ejection sequence in order to avoid people and property on the ground.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The vintage ex-military jet was on an airworthiness test flight after a 12-year rebuilding process. Thirty-five minutes into the flight, and while on approach to an airport, the pilot announced over the radio that he wanted to conduct multiple landings. A little over 2 minutes later, he stated that the airplane would make a full stop, and 7 seconds after that, the pilot reported that he would have to eject. The engine had flamed out, but the pilot stayed with airplane until it cleared a crowded parking lot. The pilot did not survive the low trajectory ejection. Post-accident analysis revealed that one fuel gauge was frozen around 575 pounds, while the other had a needle slap mark at 740 pounds. All four fuselage fuel tanks were found empty, while both inboard wing tanks contained some fuel. The amount of fuel in the wing tanks at the time of the accident was undetermined due to tank leakage from the impact.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.