Piper PA-28-180 N11NT

Summary

On 18 May 2024 at about 16:28 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N11NT was involved in an accident near Dell City, Texas, 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

18 May 2024 at 16:28

Classification

Accident

Location

Dell City, Texas, United States

Coordinates

31.9387, -105.2013

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N11NT

Category

Airplane

Year built

1972

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Midland → El Paso

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN24LA191

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to switch fuel tanks while en route which resulted in the loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that on a cross country flight, the engine lost power. He turned on the fuel pump and attempted to restart the engine several times; however, the engine would not restart, so he landed the airplane in a field. During the rollout, the left tire impacted a barbed wire fence, the left landing gear separated from the airplane, and the left wing to drug along the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the bottom of the left wing. The pilot stated that he was switching fuel tanks every hour, but he became distracted when the airplane crossed a mountain range and he did not switch the fuel tanks. The engine lost power due to fuel starvation. The pilot reported there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.