Cessna 172G accident near Hazel Green, Alabama, November 28, 1997
On November 28, 1997 at about 9:20 pm local time, a Cessna 172G, registered N3908L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hazel Green, Alabama (Stephens Airfield). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's miscalculating the aircraft's fuel consumption for the flight, resulting in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 28, 1997 · about 9:20 pm local time
- Place
- Hazel Green, Alabama · Stephens Airfield · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172G · all 172Gs on the register
- Registration
- N3908L · no longer on the register · serial 17254077
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated he remembered nothing about the day of or the flight that resulted in the accident. The aircraft was observed in flight with the propeller stopped just before impact with trees. All components of the airframe and engine were postcrash tested negatively for malfunction or failure. Fuel was tested negatively for water content. The fuel tanks were not ruptured, and there was no odor of fuel at the crash site. Evidence in the aircraft and statements by the pilot's friends indicate the pilot planned to change the aircraft's fuel selector valve after landing. The aircraft type-certificate data sheets state that of the 39 gallons that can be onloaded, 3 gallons must be considered unusable. Something less than 2 gallons was actually removed from the total fuel system.
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: 345 hours in all; 330 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 285 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,169 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 29, 1997; 32 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18, 2,200 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:56 pm from HSV, 24 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.
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.