Amateur-built SC7 accident near Findlay Twnshp, Pennsylvania, September 17, 1996
On September 17, 1996 at about 3:00 am local time, a amateur-built SC7, registered N10DA, was destroyed in an accident near Findlay Twnshp, Pennsylvania. 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 visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper in-flight decision to continue to his destination when known en route delays were encountered 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
- September 17, 1996 · about 3:00 am local time
- Place
- Findlay Twnshp, Pennsylvania · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SC7
- Registration
- N10DA · no longer on the register · serial SH1873
- Damage
- Destroyed
- 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 had flown this route in make and model airplane for nearly 4 years. He calculated 900 pounds of fuel were required for the flight, and saw 956 pounds on the fuel totalizer. The pilot was told by the ground controller of weather delays to his destination that ranged up to 2.5 hours. En route he was issued holding instructions with an EFC of 50 minutes later. After released from holding, 52 minutes after takeoff, the pilot was told that he was being vectored for a 35 mile final approach. The pilot then told the controller that he was fuel critical and the controller vectored him ahead of other airplanes. Ten minutes later, 84 minutes after takeoff, the controller asked his fuel status, and the pilot responded 'pretty low, seems like I'm losing oil pressure.' The pilot then advised the controller, 85 minutes after takeoff, that he shut down the right engine. He then declared an emergency and advised that he was not going to make the airport. Examination of the wreckage revealed the fuel tanks were intact, the fuel caps were secured, and the amount of fuel recovered from both tanks was 1.5 gallons, which was less than the specified unusable quantity. Company records showed that similar flights took about 48 minutes, and the airplane's average fuel flow was 580 pounds per hour.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 11,000 hours in all; 1,100 in this make and model; 79 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 8,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 18,553 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, August 1, 1996; 44 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Garrett TPE331-2-201A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: North Star Air Cargo, INC
The flight
- Departed from: CKB Clarksburg WV
- Destination: PIT Pittsburgh PA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 060° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,600 ft; scat at 1,100 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:51 am from PIT, 3 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.
Other NTSB records under N10DA 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.