ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 267983
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| Date: | Wednesday 22 September 2021 |
| Time: | 16:24 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28R-200 Cherokee Arrow II |
| Owner/operator: | Petersen Aircraft Inc |
| Registration: | N3906X |
| MSN: | 28R-7535348 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1975 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 7404 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming IO-360-C1C |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Page, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | San Martin Airport, CA (E16) |
| Page Airport, AZ (PGA/KPGA) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On September 22, 2021, about 1624 mountain standard time, a Piper PA-28R-200, N3906X, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Page Municipal Airport (PGA), Page, Arizona. The pilot sustained fatal injuries, and the passenger sustained serious injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
The pilot and the passenger (the pilot’s wife) were making their first cross-country flight in their private airplane. After loading the airplane with several items, including a boat motor, camping gear, a raft, and two dogs, the pilot completed the airplane’s weight and balance calculations, and the airplane departed. The climb and cruise portions of the flight were uneventful. About 3 hours 15 minutes into the flight, the pilot began to descend the airplane to an altitude of about 7,700 ft mean sea level (msl) and, about 12 minutes before the accident, descended the airplane to about 6,600 ft msl. The passenger stated that the pilot became upset a few minutes before the accident, and the airplane began to descend about 1 minute before the accident until it impacted the ground.
The propeller blade signatures at the accident site were consistent with low rotational energy. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed no evidence of a preimpact mechanical malfunction or anomaly with the engine or airframe. The examination found no fuel in either fuel tank, neither of which was breached, and there was no evidence of a fuel odor or staining on the airframe.
Fuel performance computations suggested that the airplane likely lost power due to fuel exhaustion about 1 minute before the accident. These computations also suggested that the airplane departed with 42 gallons instead of the 48 gallons indicated in the pilot’s operating handbook, likely to accommodate the weight of the cargo. Although the pilot had completed weight and balance calculations for the accident flight, no evidence indicated that he considered the airplane’s performance. If the pilot had properly computed the airplane’s fuel consumption for the planned flight, he should have recognized that the airplane had insufficient fuel to reach its destination. Instead, fuel exhaustion occurred, which led to a total loss of engine power. The airplane was also slightly over gross weight at the time of departure, which likely didn’t affect his forced landing as the airplane landed upright and the center of gravity was within published limitations.
Both occupants were wearing their three-point restraints, and they sustained serious traumatic injuries during the impact. Evidence showed that the heaviest portion of the boat motor had contacted the pilot’s seat at the time of impact, which caused the seat to move forward during impact and compress the pilot between the seatback and forward control panel. This loss of occupiable space likely contributed to the severity of his injuries.
Toxicology testing of the pilot’s blood detected the presence of two sedating antihistamines. At the time of the pilot’s death, one of the medications was likely at therapeutic levels, and the other was at subtherapeutic levels but was likely at therapeutic levels when the airplane departed. The medications can impair cognitive and psychomotor performance; however, the investigation could not determine, based on the available evidence, if the effects from the pilot’s use of the medications contributed to the accident.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s improper fuel planning for a cross-country flight, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a total loss of engine power.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/103948/pdf
https://www.lakepowelllife.com/fatal-plane-crash-in-paria-plateau/
NTSB
https://registry.faa.gov/AircraftInquiry/Search/NNumberResult?nNumberTxt=N3906X
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N3906X
https://www.airport-data.com/images/aircraft/001/144/001144529.jpg (photo)
Location
Images:
Photo: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Sep-2021 11:57 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 23-Sep-2021 17:18 | johnwg | Updated [Time, Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 24-Sep-2021 01:39 | Geno | Updated [Location, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 24-Sep-2021 01:42 | Geno | Updated [Phase, Narrative] |
| 24-Sep-2021 15:54 | johnwg | Updated [Time, Phase, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 05-Oct-2021 16:31 | aaronwk | Updated [Time, Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 12-Oct-2021 21:06 | Captain Adam | Updated [Narrative] |
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