Piper PA-28-181 N4142F

Summary

On 9 June 2000 at about 18:15 local time, a Piper PA-28-181 registered N4142F was involved in an accident near Indianapolis, Indiana, 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

9 June 2000 at 18:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

Nearest airport

Greenwood Municipal (HFY)

Coordinates

39.7698, -86.1109

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-181

Registration

N4142F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Waukegan → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI00LA156

Nobody was injured.

The improper in-flight decision of the pilot not to land at the nearest airport at the first loss of engine power. Factors to the accident were fuel exhaustion, the excessive fuel flow, and the airport perimeter fence.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During cruise flight, 10-miles from the destination airport, the engine quit. The pilot was able to restart the engine after selecting the other fuel tank. The engine experienced two subsequent power losses before the engine was unable to be restarted. The final engine failure was experienced 2-miles from the destination airport. The pilot stated that he executed a forced landing, but was unable to reach runway 19 and impacted the airport perimeter fence during the approach. The proposed flight was to depart Greenwood Municipal Airport (HFY), Greenwood, Indiana, fly to Waukegan Regional Airport (UGN), Waukegan, Illinois, and return to HFY. The pilot reported that he had planned on burning 10-gallons per hour, from which he calculated an endurance of 4-hours 48-minutes. The total duration of the trip, as recorded by the pilot's global positioning system unit, was 3-hours 52-minutes. The aircraft's HOBBS meter indicated that 3.9-hours had elapsed from the initial departure from HFY. The pilot indicated that his engine cruise setting was 2,350 rpm and that he had leaned the mixture when at cruising altitude. According to the Pilot Operating Handbook (POH), appropriate for the serial number of the accident aircraft, the fuel flow was listed as 9.5 gallons/hour for a power setting of 65-percent of maximum power. The POH lists the maximum useable fuel capacity as 48-gallons. Utilizing 48-gallons of useable fuel and a flight time of 3.9-hours results in a calculated fuel flow of approximately 12.307 gallons/hour. Post-accident investigation failed to find any fuel in the fuel strainer bowl, fuel line leading to the carburetor, or fuel filter located on the electric fuel pump. The pilot reported that he first experienced engine power interruptions approximately 10-miles north of the destination airport. There was an airport, Post-Air Airport (7L8), Indianapolis, Indiana, located 028.4 degrees-magnetic from the destination airport at a distance of 8.1-nautical miles.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.