Piper PA-28-180 N40RT

Summary

On 15 April 2004 at about 01:00 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N40RT was involved in an accident near Columbia, Missouri, 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

15 April 2004 at 01:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Columbia, Missouri, United States

Coordinates

39.0193, -92.3009

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N40RT

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mason → Monroe City

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

CHI04CA106

Nobody was injured.

The pilot inadvertently became lost and over flew his destination in cruise flight and selected an unsuitable landing area for his precautionary landing. Factors were the rough/uneven terrain, the barbed wire fence, and the fence post encountered during the precautionary landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane sustained substantial damage on impact with terrain during a precautionary landing. The pilot reported that he checked weather, filed a flight plan, performed a preflight, and verified that both tanks were full. The pilot stated that the first fuel tank switch was completed 12 minutes after departure and the remaining tank switches were completed on 15 to 17 minute balanced intervals. The pilot stated that he over flew his destination and turned around toward a known city. The pilot stated, "The left tank ran out of fuel, and, I reacted automatically & immediately turned on the electric fuel pump then switched from the left to the right tank - the engine fired up right away. I thought about issuing a May-Day call, but, decided not to because [Air Traffic Control] lost radar contact with me at 4000ft, and, I was at 3500. I did not want to waste fuel climbing or waste time to set up radios and communicate -started thinking about my aviate, navigate, communicate priorities. I had the radial to track back to a known airport location, Hannibal, but, I began to doubt if I had the fuel to get there. This logic hinged on the fact that I had been religious about keeping the tanks balanced. If I had emptied the left, regardless of why it emptied prematurely, the right tank should be no more than 15 minutes behind it. Figured Hannibal was at least 15 minutes out with Monroe City closer, but, neither in view. To greatly compound matters, the sun was well on its way to setting. Guessed I might have no more than 5 or 10 minutes of light left. Scanned around again for an airport - none found. Started looking for a place to make an emergency landing. ... Decided to go with my 1st choice pasture/hay field with known surface. Next, thought I heard a burp from the engine as the field approached. This made it easier to commit to the precautionary landing. ... The field was not long enough, though. I rolled into scrub brush and a barbed wire fence with metal fence posts." The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions associated with the airplane in reference to the flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.