Piper PA-28-140 N41375

Summary

On 20 August 2000 at about 18:30 local time, a Piper PA-28-140 registered N41375, operated by Aviation Training Center, was involved in an accident near Ennis, Texas, United States. 4 people were on board and 2 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

20 August 2000 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Ennis, Texas, United States

Coordinates

32.3310, -96.6206

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-140

Registration

N41375

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Aviation Training Center

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lancaster → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW00LA237

2 people had minor injuries.

The loss of engine power due to fuel starvation, which resulted from the pilot's improper fuel selector positioning.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor was maneuvering the aircraft when the engine cowling blew open. The pilot then heard a loud bang and the engine experienced a loss of engine power. The pilot subsequently performed a forced landing to a field, and during the landing roll, the nose landing gear collapsed. The FAA inspector found the fuel selector positioned on the left fuel tank. The flight instructor stated that she moved the fuel selector to that position after the accident. The salvage personnel, who recovered the airplane, stated that they drained approximately 15 gallons of fuel from the right fuel tank and the left fuel tank was empty. Examination of the airplane revealed no anomalies that would have prevented engine operation. No fuel was found in the electric fuel pump, the fuel line to the fuel sump, the sump, the fuel line to the carburetor, or the carburetor bowl.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.