N1792T

On September 9, 1996, about 1815 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28-140, N1792T, operated by Multi Air Service Inc. for Shadow Traffic, was substantially damaged during a forced landing in Closter, New Jersey. The commercial pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the local aerial observation flight which departed from the Essex County Airport, Caldwell, New Jersey, about 1400, and was operated under 14 CFR Part 91.

In the NTSB Accident report, the pilot stated:

"...I planned a flight to do traffic patrol, the flight was planned and conducted at 1500 [feet] MSL at 2100 RPM. According to the performance charts, that would give me a fuel burn of 5.6 gph. To be more conservative and at the advice of the aircraft owner, I normally use 7 GPH fuel burn for this type of flight. There was over 36 gallons of fuel on board because both tanks were over the tabs. This provided me with over 5 hrs. 10 minutes fuel on board. I took off at 2:00 PM. At approximately 6:15 - 6:30 PM I experienced engine trouble. On the way back to the airport, the engine cut off and I couldn't restart it. After switching tanks and attempting a restart the engine started then stopped again. I called Teterboro tower and told them I was doing a precautionary landing at a golf course about 7 miles from Teterboro. At the end of the landing roll the aircraft was damaged. There were no injuries."

The FAA examined the aircraft at the accident site and reported that the left tank was ruptured with no evidence of a fuel spill. The right tank was intact and empty.