Piper PA-24-250 N5253P

Summary

On 12 August 2022 at about 20:57 local time, a Piper PA-24-250 registered N5253P, operated by Whitten Ranch Inc, was involved in an accident near Kearney, Nebraska, 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

12 August 2022 at 20:57

Classification

Accident

Location

Kearney, Nebraska, United States

Coordinates

40.6993, -99.0817

Aircraft

Piper PA-24-250

Registration

N5253P

Category

Airplane

Year built

1958

Engines

1

Operator

Whitten Ranch Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cozad → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN22LA384

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadequate in-flight planning that resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that while on a short cross-country flight and near his destination airport, the airplane’s engine lost power. The pilot subsequently performed a wheels-up landing on a gravel road. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right side of the fuselage. A postaccident inspection of the airplane at the accident site revealed that both wing fuel tanks were empty. No other preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions were found with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The loss of engine power was due to fuel exhaustion.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.