Convair 340 accident near Spokane, Washington, January 5, 1996
On January 5, 1996 at about 2:53 am local time, a Convair 340, registered N358SA, was destroyed in an accident near Spokane, Washington. It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's improper management of the fuel/system, which resulted in loss of power in both engines, due to fuel starvation. Factors relating to the accident were: false indications of the cockpit fuel gauges, darkness, and the presence of a berm in the emergency landing area.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 5, 1996 · about 2:53 am local time
- Place
- Spokane, Washington · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Convair 340 · all 340s on the register
- Registration
- N358SA · registry record · serial 153
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Before the ferry flight, the pilot (PIC) & inexperienced copilot noted the left & right, float-type, underwing, fuel gauges indicated about 3,900 & 4,050 lbs of fuel, respectively. After takeoff, they noted that the cockpit gauges showed an opposite fuel imbalance of 4,100 & 3,600 lbs in the left & right tanks. Due to this indication, the PIC crossfed fuel from the left tank to both engines for about 30 min to rectify the perceived fuel imbalance. Later as they approached the destination, the left tank was exhausted of fuel, & the left engine lost power, although the left gauge indicated about 500 lbs of fuel remaining in that tank. The PIC then crossfed fuel from the right tank to both engines, & left engine power was restored. ATC vectored the flight for an emergency ILS runway 3 approach. The PIC was distracted during the approach & maneuvered the airplane to re-intercept the localizer. About 500' agl in IMC, both engines lost power. During a forced landing at night, the airplane struck a raised berm & was damaged. No evidence of fuel was found in the left tank; 125 gal of fuel was found in the right tank. Unusable fuel was published as 3 gal. During an exam of the engines & fuel system components, no preimpact failure was found. Historical data from the manufacturer indicated that when the airplane had a low fuel state, unporting of fuel tank outlets could occur during certain maneuvers. This information was not in the Convair 340 flight manual, although unporting of the outlets on this flight was not verified.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,194 hours in all; 817 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 4,962 as pilot in command; 626 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,642 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 19, 1995; 21 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 48,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-2800-CB16 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DVT Deer Valley AZ at 9:20 pm
- Destination: GEG
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 030° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 600 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 am from GEG, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 SEA96FA039.