Piper PA-38-112 accident near Manassas, Virginia, August 2, 1997
On August 2, 1997 at about 3:50 pm local time, a Piper PA-38-112, registered N23831, was substantially damaged in an accident near Manassas, Virginia (Manassas Regional airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's misjudgment of clearance between the aircraft and fuel truck, which resulted in a collision.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 2, 1997 · about 3:50 pm local time · cases in 1997
- Place
- Manassas, Virginia · Manassas Regional · cases near this airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-38-112 · all PA-38-112s on the register
- Registration
- N23831 · registry record · serial 38-79A1057
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While taxiing, the pilot misjudged the clearance of her right wing to a parked fuel truck that was ahead and to the right of her. The right wing tip struck the fuel truck, and the airplane pivoted into the fuel truck. The pilot was not injured, but a person refueling an airplane on the other side of the fuel truck received minor injuries while trying to escape from the scene. The right wing was bent rearward during the accident.
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: 123 hours in all; 117 in this make and model; 44 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days; 31 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,021 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 31, 1997; 61 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HEF
- Destination: JYO Leesburg VA
- Flight plan: not recorded
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 13,000 ft; scat at 7,000 ft
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:51 pm from IAD, 14 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N23831 on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Piper PA-38 Tomahawk 442 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,840 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C 84 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Washington Manassas/Harry P Davis Field · nearest airport
- Leesburg Executive · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Virginia 1,361 since 1982 · 228 in the last ten years
- Virginia 5,972 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/NYC97LA164.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.