Piper PA-18-150 accident near Winnemucca, Nevada, March 8, 2002
On March 8, 2002 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-18-150, registered N742, was substantially damaged in an accident near Winnemucca, Nevada (Winnemucca airport). It was a public-use flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate fuel consumption calculations that lead to fuel exhaustion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 8, 2002 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Winnemucca, Nevada · Winnemucca · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18-150 · all PA-18-150s on the register
- Registration
- N742 · registry record · serial 18-8146
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public-use flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot made an emergency landing in an open field and came to rest inverted after the engine quit while on short final for landing. On the landing rollout from a forced landing, on uneven, highly vegetated terrain, the airplane went up on its nose and then came to rest inverted. The purpose of the flight was animal control. The airplane had been refueled with 36 gallons that morning, and flew for 5.5 hours prior to the accident. The accident occurred while the airplane was attempting to enter the traffic pattern for landing at the airport. The engine started to run rough and then quit. The pilot searched for a place to land and the engine caught, so he continued to fly towards the airport. The engine quit again, and the pilot chose a spot straight ahead. On the landing rollout the left main landing gear contacted brush and the top of a dune, collapsing the left main landing gear. Fuel burn at 75 percent power is 9.7 gph. The engine was visually inspected and an engine run was conducted with no mechanical anomalies noted.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,301 hours in all; 1,100 in this make and model; 196 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days; 1,252 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 21, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 17,219 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 25, 2002; 86 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-C4P (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: WMC Winnemucca NV at 2:30 pm
- Destination: WMC Winnemucca NV
- Runway 20, 4,800 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.18 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from WMC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 LAX02TA105.