ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 194556
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| Date: | Monday 3 April 2017 |
| Time: | 22:00 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N55339 |
| MSN: | 28-7325380 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1973 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-320 SERIES |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Los Angeles County, Whittier, CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Temecula, CA (F70) |
| San Diego, CA | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The airline transport pilot reported to local law enforcement that, while he was flying at 1,000 ft, the airplane’s engine experienced a total loss of power. He subsequently conducted a forced landing onto a large trucking yard. The landing site was about 61 miles northwest of the departure airport and in the opposite direction of his intended destination.
Examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel selector was set to the right fuel tank. The master electrical switch was “ON,” the right fuel gauge indicated empty, and the left fuel gauge indicated between 0 and 5 gallons. The fuel tanks were intact and undamaged. It is likely that the loss of engine power was the result of fuel starvation.
Responding law enforcement officers reported that they could smell a strong odor of alcohol emitting from the pilot’s breath/person. A formal blood test, which was administered about 5 hours after the accident, revealed that the pilot had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.16%. The effects of ethanol on aviators are generally well understood; it significantly impairs pilots' performance, even at very low levels. Federal Aviation Administration regulations prohibit any person from acting or attempting to act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft while having 0.040 gm/dl or more ethanol in the blood.
Probable Cause: The pilot's impaired decision-making due to alcohol intoxication and his improper fuel management, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
FAA register: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=55339
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-Apr-2017 15:38 | Geno | Added |
| 04-Apr-2017 15:45 | Geno | Updated [Aircraft type, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 11-Nov-2018 08:33 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative, Accident report, ] |
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