Piper PA28 N98146

Summary

On 21 August 2018 at about 03:05 local time, a Piper PA28 registered N98146, operated by Aviation Academy Hawaii, was involved in an accident near Mokuleia, Hawaii, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 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

21 August 2018 at 03:05

Classification

Accident

Location

Mokuleia, Hawaii, United States

Nearest airport

Dillingham Airfield (HDH)

Coordinates

21.5781, -158.1817

Aircraft

Piper PA28

Registration

N98146

Category

Airplane

Year built

1969

Engines

1

Operator

Aviation Academy Hawaii

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Honolulu → Honolulu

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR18TA236

3 people had minor injuries.

A total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the flight instructor's inadequate preflight inspection.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that, before the flight, he requested that the airplane be refueled, and his subsequent preflight inspection revealed that the airplane had been fueled to the specified level. While conducting touch-and-go takeoffs and landings during the instructional flight, the engine lost power about 300 ft above ground level, and the instructor performed a forced landing to an open field adjacent to the runway. The airplane impacted a fence and came to rest upright. Postaccident examination revealed that the right-wing fuel tank contained about 7 to 8 gallons of fuel, with a slow fuel leak, and the left-wing fuel tank was void of fuel and undamaged. The fuel selector was positioned to the left-wing tank. An engine test run revealed no anomalies. Interviews with the staff of the fixed base operator from which the instructor ordered fuel revealed that a fuel order was received for the accident airplane; however, the airplane was not refueled before the accident flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.