Piper PA-28-181 accident near Oroville, California, September 5, 1998
On September 5, 1998 at about 2:20 am local time, a Piper PA-28-181, registered N2161G, was substantially damaged in an accident near Oroville, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's inaccurate preflight and in-flight fuel consumption calculations, which resulted in fuel exhaustion. The pilot's failure to obtain the proper engine power setting charts to use in fuel consumption calculations was also causal.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 5, 1998 · about 2:20 am local time
- Place
- Oroville, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-181 · all PA-28-181s on the register
- Registration
- N2161G · no longer on the register · serial 28-7990193
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After 4 hours of flight, the engine lost power and the pilot made a forced landing onto a road. The airplane struck a sign and veered off the road into rocks, which collapsed the nose gear. The pilot flew for 1-hour periods on the right tank, the left tank, and then the right tank again. He reselected the left tank and noted the right tank was on the empty mark. About 25 minutes later the engine lost power. The pilot maintained 1,000 feet for the first part of the flight, climbed to 6,500 feet, then descended to 4,500 feet for the remainder of the flight. He cruised at 2,500 rpm throughout the flight and leaned to 100 degrees rich of peak EGT (exhaust gas temperature). The performance section of the POH stated that the cruise power setting and cruise fuel flow should be selected using the Lycoming Operator's Manual (LOM). This manual was not in the airplane and he did not reference one during his preflight planning. He had never used this manual in his training or checkout in this type of airplane. The operating conditions section of the LOM stated that performance cruise (75 percent rated) was 2,450 rpm, 135 hp (horsepower), with a fuel consumption of 10.5 gph (gallons per hour). Above 75 percent, it said to maintain full rich position of the mixture control. Using the sea level and altitude performance chart at standard temperatures, Lycoming engineers determined the power generated under the conditions the pilot stated he encountered. For the portion of the flight at 1,000 feet, the airplane was generating 165 hp, and consuming fuel at the rate of 13.49 gph. At 6,500 feet, 134 hp was generated using 10.95 gph. At 4,500 feet, 144 hp was generated using 11.77 gph. The retriever drained 18 ounces of blue fuel from the wing fuel tanks and 3 ounces from the sediment bowl. An inspection of the airplane revealed the vents were clear, fuel flowed through the fuel system without leaks, and the spark plugs were clean.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 230 hours in all; 50 in this make and model; 29 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 164 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,185 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 8, 1998; 85 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4M (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Aviation West
The flight
- Departed from: SZP Santa Paula CA at 10:52 pm
- Destination: CIC Chico CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 170° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 12,000 ft; scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:55 am from BAB, 23 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 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.