Fuel exhaustion Accident Cessna A152 N234ZN,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 36598
 
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Date:Tuesday 8 December 1987
Time:13:35
Type:Silhouette image of generic C152 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Cessna A152
Owner/operator:Southwest Aviation
Registration: N234ZN
MSN: A1520988
Total airframe hrs:2361 hours
Engine model:LYCOMING O-235-L2C
Fatalities:Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category:Accident
Location:Benson, AZ -   United States of America
Phase: Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:Private
Departure airport:Tucson, AZ (THS)
Destination airport:Las Cruces, NM (LCR)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
ABT 20 MIN AFTER TKOF, THE ACFT CRASHED IN VMC CONDS, APRX 26 MI ALONG THE ROUTE FM TUCSON TO LAS CRUCES. INITIAL IMPACTOCCURRED WITH THE L WING HITTING THE TOP OF A YUCCA PLANT AS THE ACFT WAS IN A SLGT NOSE DOWN, L WING LOW ATTITUDE. JUSTBYD THIS POINT, THE ACFT CONTACTED THE GND & SKIDDED ABT 90' BFR HITTING A SCRUB TREE & COMING TO REST WITH EXTSV DMG. THE THROTTLE WAS FND AT IDLE, MIXTURE AT IDLE-CUTOFF, CARB HEAT WAS OFF & THE FLAPS WERE EXTDD 10 DEG. NO PREIMPACT MECHPRBLM WAS FND. THE ENG RAN NORMALLY DRG AN OPNL CHECK. NO WITNESSES WERE FND. A CAMERA WAS FND WITH FILM EXPOSED ON A PREV flight. AFTER DVLPMNT, IT HAD IN-FLT PHOTOS OF A TRUCK & A TRAIN TAKEN NR GND LVL. THE TRAIN WAS IDENTIFIED. ITS CREW RECALLED SEEING AN ACFT MAKING LOW PASSES AT THE TRAIN EARLIER THAT DAY (COINCIDING WITH THE PLT'S PREV FLT). PEOPLE, WHO KNEW THE PLT, SAID HE SPOKE OF 'DIVE BOMBING' SEMI-TRUCKS & TRAINS, FLYING UNDER PHONE LINES, LNDG AFTER INTENTIONALFUEL EXHAUSTION & MAKING A LNDG IN THE DESERT. ACDNT SITE WAS NR A RAILROAD, INTERSTATE HIWAY & MOVIE SET (OLD TUCSON). CAUSE:

Sources:

NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20001213X32683

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
24-Oct-2008 10:30 ASN archive Added
21-Dec-2016 19:23 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]

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