ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 27639
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| Date: | Monday 24 September 1984 |
| Time: | 16:09 |
| Type: | Piper PA-31T3 Cheyenne (T-1040) |
| Owner/operator: | Pee Dee Air Express t/a Trans Southern Airways |
| Registration: | N9193Y |
| MSN: | 31T-8275010 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1857 hours |
| Engine model: | P&W PT6A-11 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 11 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | William B. Hartsfield Airport, Atlanta, Georgia -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Passenger - Scheduled |
| Departure airport: | Florence Regional Airport, Florence, South Carolina (FLO/KFLO) |
| William B. Hartsfield Airport, Atlanta, Georgia (KATL) | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Substantially damaged September 24, 1984 when crashed short of the runway on final approach to William B. Hartsfield Airport, Atlanta, Georgia. All eleven persons on board (crew of two plus nine passengers) were unhurt. According to the following excerpt from the official NTSB report into the accident:
"THE NORMAL FUEL LOAD FOR THE FLIGHT WAS 1,500 LBS, BUT WITH A FORECAST TAIL WIND & AN ESTIMATED FLIGHT TIME FOR ONLY 1+10, THE CREW ACCEPTED THE LOWER INDICATED (950 LB) FUEL LOAD. THE FLIGHT WAS UNEVENTFUL UNTIL AN INDICATION OF 250 LBS PER SIDE, THEN THE FUEL 'SEEMED TO DISSIPATE FASTER.' WITH AN INDICATION OF 150 LBS ON DOWNWIND, THE CO-PILOT RECOMMENDED DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. THE CAPTAIN'S RESPONSE WAS TO ASK AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL FOR THE ANTICIPATED LENGTH OF THE DOWNWIND LEG. HE WAS TOLD 20 MILES.
PRIORITY HANDLING WAS REQUESTED, BUT WAS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR A DECLARED EMERGENCY. THE APPROACH WAS CONTINUED WITH NORMAL HANDLING FOR APPROXIMATELY 10 MINUTES. AT 16:08:39, THE CREW DECLARED AN EMERGENCY, THEN REPORTED THE AIRCRAFT WAS OUT OF FUEL. IT CRASH LANDED ON ROUGH TERRAIN, SHORT OF RUNWAY 8.
AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT REVEALED FUEL SENSORS HAD BEEN IMPROPERLY INSTALLED (INTERCHANGED BETWEEN THE INBOARD & OUTBOARD TANKS). THUS THE GAUGES INDICATED ABOUT 180 LBS MORE THAN THE APPROXIMATELY 763 LBS THAT WAS ACTUALLY ABOARD AT TAKE OFF. A SPECIAL 500 HOUR INSPECTION OF THE ENTIRE FUEL SYSTEM WAS MADE ON JULY 8, 1984 USING THE 'WET' METHOD, BUT ONLY THE CAPACITANCE METHOD CHECKS EACH INDIVIDUAL SENSOR
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISION..IMPROPER..PILOT IN COMMAND
REMEDIAL ACTION..DELAYED..PILOT IN COMMAND
FLUID,FUEL..EXHAUSTION
Contributing Factors:
FUEL SYSTEM..INCORRECT
TERRAIN CONDITION..ROUGH/UNEVEN
MAINTENANCE,INSTALLATION..IMPROPER
ENGINE INSTRUMENTS,FUEL QUANTITY GAUGE..FALSE INDICATION
PROCEDURE INADEQUATE..MANUFACTURER
FLUID, FUEL..LOW LEVEL"
Sources:
1. NTSB Identifcation LAX85FA024 at https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20001214X40985&key=1
2. FAA: http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?omni=Home-N-Number&nNumberTxt=9193Y
3. https://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-recs/recletters/A86_48_50.pdf
4. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.baaa-acro.com/1984/archives/crash-of-a-piper-pa-31-cheyenne-in-atlanta/]
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 27-Sep-2008 01:00 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:16 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:20 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 06-Aug-2017 16:55 | TB | Updated [Aircraft type, Cn, Source, Narrative] |
| 13-Sep-2017 17:29 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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