Piper PA-31-350-T1020 accident near Fort Belvoir, Virginia, March 11, 1983
On March 11, 1983 at about 7:58 am local time, a Piper PA-31-350-T1020, registered N120AE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fort Belvoir, Virginia (Davidson Army Airfield). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 11, 1983 · about 7:58 am local time
- Place
- Fort Belvoir, Virginia · Davidson Army Airfield
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-350-T1020 PA-31-350- · all PA-31-350-T1020s on the register
- Registration
- N120AE · no longer on the register · serial 31-8253006
- 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
ON A FLT FROM NEWARK, NJ TO RICHMOND, VA, THE DEPARTURE TIME WAS DELAYED, AND SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT DID NOT ARRIVE AT RICHMOND UNTIL AFTER THE REFUELING FACILITIES WERE CLOSED. THE PLT DECIDED THERE WAS SUFFICIENT FUEL ABOARD TO COMPLETE THE NEXT FLT TO THE WASHINGTON NATIONAL ARPT, SO HE DEPARTED ON THAT FLT. HOWEVER, ABOUT 21 MI FROM HIS DESTINATION, HE DECLARED A LOW-FUEL STATE & REQUESTED VECTORS TO THE NEAREST ARPT. VECTORS WERE PROVIDED TOWARD DAVIDSON ARMY AIRFIELD. HOWEVER, BOTH ENGS SUBSEQUENTLY LOST POWER FROM LACK OF FUEL & THE ACFT CRASHED IN A WOODED AREA APRX 500 YDS SHORT OF RWY 32.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,675 hours in all; 120 in this make and model; 250 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 7,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RIC Richmond VA
- Destination: DCA Washington DC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 32
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.