Aero Commander 500U accident near Copperhill, Tennessee, February 12, 2002
On February 12, 2002 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Aero Commander 500U, registered N441WW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Copperhill, Tennessee (Barwick Lafayette airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate preflight planning, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion and a subsequent collision with trees during emergency landing on unsuitable terrain
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 12, 2002 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Copperhill, Tennessee · Barwick Lafayette · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aero Commander 500U · all 500Us on the register
- Registration
- N441WW · registry record · serial 500-1641-4
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A witness heard the airplane's engines make "sputtering" engine noises that cut out and quit prior to its impact with the wooded terrain. A sheriff's deputy who responded to the scene heard the pilot state the airplane ran out of fuel. The propeller blades of both engines displayed minor damage, and both propeller spinners were found intact and in place. No evidence of fuel odor nor fuel leakage was observed at the accident site. During examination, both engines were supplied fuel and a source of electricity. Each engine operated smoothly during testing at rpm ranging from idle to 1900.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,805 hours in all; 3,100 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: August 22, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,703 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 12, 2001
- Maximum gross weight: 6,750 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Lycoming IO-540 E1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming IO-540 E1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RHP Andrews NC at 7:30 pm
- Destination: 9A5 Lafayette GA
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from CHA, 36 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.