Piper PA-25-235 accident near Frankfort, Michigan, October 5, 1993
On October 5, 1993 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-25-235, registered N6862Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Frankfort, Michigan (Frankfort City-County airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to perform refueling.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 5, 1993 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Frankfort, Michigan · Frankfort City-County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-25-235 · all PA-25-235s on the register
- Registration
- N6862Z · registry record · serial 25-2548
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT OF A GLIDER TOW PLANE DESCENDED FOR LANDING AT HOME FIELD. THE ENGINE QUIT DUE TO FUEL EXHAUSTION AND THE AIRPLANE LANDED SHORT OF THE RUNWAY.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: balloon
- Flight time: 426 hours in all; 3 in this make and model; 47 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 362 as pilot in command; 5 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,350 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 30, 1993; 29 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-A1D5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3D4 at 7:50 pm
- Destination: 3D4
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 32, 3,250 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.
Other NTSB records under N6862Z the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.