Amateur-built PULSAR XP accident near Fort Pierce, Florida, August 13, 1998
On August 13, 1998 at about 3:22 pm local time, a amateur-built PULSAR XP, registered N701JL, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fort Pierce, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper fuel management during a cross country flight which resulted in a total loss of engine power during the approach for landing and subsequent in-flight collision with wires and terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 13, 1998 · about 3:22 pm local time
- Place
- Fort Pierce, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built PULSAR XP
- Registration
- N701JL · registry record · serial 701
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot departed on a VFR cross-country flight. While on approach at the destination airport, the airplane experienced a total loss of engine power. The pilot switched the fuel selector valve from its original position at takeoff to the opposite tank, and attempted an engine restart with negative results. He maneuvered the airplane to avoid a collision with high voltage lines, and to line up with a road that he selected as a forced landing area. The left wing collided with a tree, the airplane continued forward, and collided with an electrical line. The nose of the airplane pitched down, and the airplane collided with the terrain and nosed over inverted. Postcrash examination revealed fuel in the left tank and no fuel in the right tank.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,020 hours in all; 85 in this make and model; 28 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 2,133 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 225 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 12, 1998; 48 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,060 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Bombardier 912-UL (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MYAM Marsh Harbor OF at 1:20 pm
- Destination: FPR FL
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:56 pm from FPR, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| 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.