# Accident 19890217003469A: Piper PA32260, Conroe, TX, February 17, 1989

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: February 17, 1989, 06:05 local time
- Place: Conroe, TX
- Airport: Montgomery  County Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 30.3645° N, 95.4259° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs from the FAA’s distance and direction from , within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.3645&lon=-95.4259&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3976W, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3976W-1992-03-05) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32-260 (registry code 7103206, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32-260) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA32260
- Reported engine: LYC O540E4B5
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,433 total, 25 in this make and model, 232 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW89LA051](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW89LA051) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19890217003469A

## Narrative

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

ENGINE FAILED AFTER LOSS OF OIL PRESSURE. CRASHED IN TREES ON EXITING CLOUDS. CRANKSHAFT AND CONNECTING ROD FAILURE

## 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 FTW89LA051](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW89LA051), Feb 17, 1989: Piper PA-32-260 (N3976W), Conroe, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: FAILURE OF THE ENGINE CRANKSHAFT DUE TO FATIGUE. THE LOW CEILING, DARK NIGHT, AND TREES IN THE EMERGENCY LANDING AREA WERE FACTORS.

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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