19860330007979A

Accident · Destroyed

FAA accident report · Piper PA24 · Somers, CT · March 30, 1986

Date
March 30, 1986 · 20:30 local
Place
Somers, CT
Airport
Ellington
Phase of flight
Descent
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Destroyed
Aircraft
N6599P
NTSB investigation
NTSBNYC86FA096
Reported as
Piper PA24
Reported engine
Lycoming O360A1A
People aboard
4
Fatal injuries
4
Pilot’s flight hours
260 total45 in this make and model0 in the last 90 days

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

The aircraft struck trees and high terrain during a night VFR aproach. The pilot began descent too early.

As the FAA filed it

THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK TREES AND HIGH TERRAIN DURING A NIGHT VFR APROACH. THE PILOT BEGAN DESCENT TOO EARLY.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.