# Accident 19890724025149A: Piper PA28161, Westerly, RI, July 24, 1989

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 24, 1989, 22:36 local time
- Place: Westerly, RI
- Airport: Westerly State
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: To Init Climb(1st Pwr Reduct)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 41.3496° N, 71.8034° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at WESTERLY STATE (WST), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.3496&lon=-71.8034&mi=10
- Aircraft: N29216, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N29216-1989-10-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-28-161 (registry code 7102803, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-161) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA28161
- Reported engine: LYC O320D3G
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC89LA174](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC89LA174) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19890724025149A

## Narrative

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

NIGHT TAKEOFF. ENCOUNTERED UNSEEN FOG. SPATIAL DISORIENTATION. HIT TREES AND FELL INTO RIVER. SWAM TO PIER.

## 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 NYC89LA174](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC89LA174), Jul 25, 1989: Piper PA-28-161 (N29216), Stonington, CT, destroyed. Probable cause: THE PILOT'S INADVERTENT FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC) AND HIS LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL DUE TO SPATIAL DISORIENTATION. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE ENVIRONMENTAL…

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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