Pacific Aerospace LTD 750XL accident near Harvest, Alabama, August 28, 2017
On August 28, 2017 at about 4:10 pm local time, a 2007 Pacific Aerospace LTD 750XL, registered N750UP, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (descent) near Harvest, Alabama. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper decision to not stop and refuel the airplane as planned and his improper in-flight fuel planning, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 28, 2017 · about 4:10 pm local time
- Place
- Harvest, Alabama · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Pacific Aerospace LTD 750XL NO SERIES, built 2007 · all 750XLs on the register
- Registration
- N750UP · registry record · serial 133
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial pilot was conducting a cross-country flight to deliver the airplane to a maintenance facility. The airplane departed with full fuel tanks. The pilot stated that, as the airplane neared the planned fuel stop airport, he thought that there was adequate fuel remaining to reach the maintenance facility, so he did not stop to refuel and continued to the destination. About 4 hours 23 minutes into the flight, which was past the expected fuel exhaustion time of about 4 hours 18 minutes (assuming a fuel burn of 50 gallons per hour, which the pilot used for his initial flight planning), the pilot declared an emergency and advised an air traffic controller that the airplane was out of fuel. The controller provided information to the pilot about nearby airports, but the airplane would not have been able to reach any of them, so the pilot initiated a forced landing to a field. Before touchdown in the field, the pilot descended to avoid power lines ahead, but the airplane hit one of the lines. The airplane touched down in the field, impacted an embankment, and came to rest upright on a road. The airplane sustained substantial damage. A small amount of fuel was observed on the ground at the accident site, and residual fuel was found in the two forward fuel tanks. Although the amount of the fuel could not be quantified, it was likely equivalent to the unusable fuel amount. Examination of the airframe fuel system components, including the fuel filter, the environmental collector tank, and the fuel lines in the engine compartment, revealed no fuel, which is consistent with fuel exhaustion. Therefore, it is likely that the pilot's improper decision to not to refuel as planned and his improper in-flight fuel planning led to the loss of all engine power due to fuel exhaustion
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
What happened, in order
- Fuel exhaustion during enroute (descent)
- Loss of engine power (total) during enroute (descent) defining event
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (flare/touchdown)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid management
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Planning/preparation › Fuel planning › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid level
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,063 hours in all; 300 in this make and model; 149 in the last 90 days; 772 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 29, 2017
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,910.9 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, May 26, 2017; 161 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney PT6A-34 (turboprop); 4,911 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CKZ Perkasie PA at 11:45 am
- Destination: HSV Huntsville AL
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 21,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from HSV, 14 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ERA17LA302.