Piper PA-24-180 accident near Titusville, Florida, September 10, 1989
On September 10, 1989 at about 5:05 pm local time, a Piper PA-24-180, registered N7946P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Titusville, Florida (Space Center Executive airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PRIVATE PILOT (DUAL STUDENT) TO ASSURE THE FUEL SELECTOR WAS POSITIONED TO THE PROPER TANK, WHICH RESULTED IN FUEL STARVATION; AND INADEQUATE SUPERVISION BY THE INSTRUCTOR PILOT (CFI). THE TREES WERE A RELATED FACTOR.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 10, 1989 · about 5:05 pm local time
- Place
- Titusville, Florida · Space Center Executive · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-180 · all PA-24-180s on the register
- Registration
- N7946P · registry record · serial 24-3182
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AS THE ACFT WAS ON FINAL APCH TO LAND AFTER A BFR FLT, THE ENG LOST POWER DUE TO FUEL STARVATION. DURING A SUBSEQUENT EMERGENCY LANDING, IT COLLIDED WITH TREES SHORT OF THE RWY & WAS DAMAGED. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE ENG LOST POWER WHEN THE RIGHT FUEL TANK EMPTIED & THE LEFT TANK WAS STILL FULL.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 75 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 6,000 as pilot in command; 3,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (invalid medical for flight)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 6,001 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 15,000 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 5:05 pm from TIX
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
Other NTSB records under N7946P the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site 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 MIA89LA244.