# Accident 19881026048239A: Piper PA31P350, Redlands, CA, October 26, 1988

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 26, 1988, 19:00 local time
- Place: Redlands, CA
- Airport: Redlands Municipal Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Unauth Low Level Opns
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.0005° N, 117.1191° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.0005&lon=-117.1191&mi=10
- Aircraft: N79HW, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N79HW-2013-06-05) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA 31P 350 (registry code 7103111, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-31p-350) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming TI0-540 series (registry code 41533, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-ti0-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA31P350
- Reported engine: LYC TIO540V2AD
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 550 total, 200 in this make and model, 18 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX89FA025](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX89FA025) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19881026048239A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

FLEW INTO RISING TERRAIN AT NIGHT IN FOG ON A SPECIAL VFR FROM ILS AT NORTON AFB TO THE REDLANDS AIRPORT.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX89FA025](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX89FA025), Oct 27, 1988: Piper PA31P-350 (N79HW), Redlands, CA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: THE PILOT'S INADVERTENT SELECTION OF AN INAPPROPRIATE ALTITUDE FOR THE ATTEMPTED NIGHT SPECIAL VFR CIRCLE TO LAND MANEUVER. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE DARK NIGHT, RESTRICTED VISIBILITIES…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft 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. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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