# Accident 20030521017579A: Piper PA28180, Bruceton Mills, WV, May 21, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 21, 2003, 11:13 local time
- Place: Bruceton Mills, WV
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.6961° N, 79.7631° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6961&lon=-79.7631&mi=10
- Aircraft: N55995, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N55995-2004-11-29) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-28-180 (registry code 7102808, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-180) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming O&VO-360 series (registry code 41514, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-o-vo-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA28180
- Reported engine: LYC O360A4A
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 1,160 total, 12 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC03FA113](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03FA113) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030521017579A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON MAY 21, 2003, ABOUT 1113 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A PIPER PA-28-180, N55995, WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT STRUCK A GUY WIRE ON A COMMUNICATION ANTENNANEAR BRUCETON MILLS, WEST VIRGINIA. THE CANADIAN-CERTIFICATED PRIVATE PILOT WAS FATALLY INJURED. INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE CRASH SITE. A VISUAL FLIGHT RULES (VFR) FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED FROM GARRISON/MARION REGIONAL AIRPORT (KCKB) TO BUTTONVILLE AIRPORT (CYKZ), TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA. AT 1129, A SPECIAL OBSERVATION AT MORGANTOWN AIRPORT (MGW) LOCATED 7.8 NM WSW OF THE CRASH SITE INCLUDED WINDS FROM 360 DEGREES AT 7 KNOTS, VISIBILITY 10 STATUE MILES, CEILING 1,500 FEET OVERCAST, TEMPERATURE 9 DEGREES C (48F), DEWPOINT 7 DEGREES C (45F), BAROMETRIC PRESSURE 30.28 INCHES HG. AND REMARKS OF RIDGES OBSCURED EAST THROUGH NORTHEAST. ACCORDING TO THE FLIGHT PLAN FILED BY THE PILOT, THE FIRST NAVIGATION FIX AFTER DEPARTURE FROM CLARKSBURG, WAS THE ALLEGHENY VOR/DME (AGC), ON A COURSE OF 016 DEGREES MAGNETIC. THE ACCIDENT SITE WAS LOCATED 16 NM EAST OF A STRAIGHT LINE COURSE BETWEEN CLARKSBURG AND THE AGC VOR. ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^

## 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 NYC03FA113](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03FA113), May 21, 2003: Piper PA-28-180 (N55995), Bruceton Mills, WV, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's intentional decision to continue visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions, and his failure to maintain obstacle clearance which resulted in the airplane striking a guy wire…

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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