Cessna 402A accident near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, December 9, 1997
On December 9, 1997 at about 3:18 am local time, a Cessna 402A, registered N728QA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Milwaukee, Wisconsin (General Mitchell Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Inadequate preflight planning/preparation, which resulted in fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 9, 1997 · about 3:18 am local time
- Place
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin · General Mitchell Intl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 402A · all 402As on the register
- Registration
- N728QA · no longer on the register · serial 402A0068
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said that he noted 10 gallons on 'each side' prior to initiating an approach. He said that about five minutes later the left engine lost power and about three minutes after that the right engine also sustained a loss of power. The damage to the airplane occurred during an undershoot to the intended runway. Emergency response individuals found no usable fuel in the airplane's fuel tanks. The pilot said that the accident might have been prevented by, 'Visual inspection of all fuel tank with calibrated device.'
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,000 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 70 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days; 2,800 as pilot in command; 1,800 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 11,030 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 9, 1997; 185 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MSN Madison WI at 2:10 am
- Destination: MKE
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 19R, 9,690 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 130° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 700 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 am from MKE
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.