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| Date: | Friday 23 June 2023 |
| Time: | 07:34 LT |
| Type: |  Piper PA-23-160 Apache |
| Owner/operator: | |
| Registration: | N4307P |
| MSN: | 23-1808 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1959 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 5101 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-320-B3B |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Ocean Springs Airport (5R2), Ocean Springs, MS -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Ocean Springs, MS |
| Brevard, NC (3NR3) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot was planning on conducting a cross-country flight to have an annual inspection performed on the airplane. Before the departure, the pilot reported there was about 105 gallons of 100 low-lead fuel onboard. Shortly after the takeoff, the pilot reported the left engine sustained a total loss of engine power, without any prior indications. The pilot performed a forced landing and the airplane impacted an unoccupied grass athletic field on the property of a school. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage.
During the accident sequence, the left-wing main fuel cell (rubber bladder style) was breached and no fuel was observed in the cell. The left-wing auxiliary fuel cell (rubber bladder style), was cut open during the recovery to facilitate fuel removal and no recoverable fuel was found. Therefore, it is unknown how much fuel was in the left-wing fuel tanks. During the recovery of the airplane from the accident site, about 45 gallons of fuel was recovered from the right-wing fuel tanks. During the postaccident examination of the left engine, no fuel was observed in any of the fuel hoses forward of the firewall, the engine-driven fuel pump, or the carburetor. All visible damage on the left propeller was consistent with impact forces caused by impact into a soft surface, with the propeller rotating at low or no power.
The investigation identified no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe, the left engine, or the left propeller that would have precluded normal operation.
Based on the available evidence, it is likely the left engine sustained a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation for undetermined reasons.
Probable Cause: A total loss of engine power during the initial climb due to fuel starvation for undetermined reasons.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB CEN23LA262
Location
Media:
PLANE CRASH: A plane crash-landed on a Mississippi school\'s practice field this morning. https://t.co/Xxm1WDOKih pic.twitter.com/Qpknh7l1xn
— WLBT 3 On Your Side (@WLBT) June 23, 2023
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Jun-2023 17:15 | harro | Added |
| 23-Jun-2023 17:16 | harro | Updated |
| 24-Jun-2023 18:49 | Dan Gryder | Updated |
| 29-Jun-2023 01:36 | Captain Adam | Updated |
| 24-Nov-2024 15:08 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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