# Accident 20090922018249A: Piper PA12, Fulton, MO, September 22, 2009

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 22, 2009, 09:35 local time
- Place: Fulton, MO
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.8608° N, 92.1353° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.8608&lon=-92.1353&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3234M, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3234M-2013-08-19) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-12 (registry code 7101202, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-12) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-235 series (registry code 41505, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-235-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA12
- Reported engine: LYC O290D2
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 258 total, 10 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN09LA597](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA597) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20090922018249A

## Narrative

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

THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT FLEW FROM VMC INTO IMC IN AN AIRPLANE THAT DID NOT HAVE GYROSCOPIC ATTITUDE OR DIRECTIONAL INSTRUMENTS.  THERE WERE NO WITNESSES TO THE ACTUAL CRASH BUT EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE INDICATED IT IMPACTED THE GROUND IN A NEAR VERTICAL ATTITUDE AT HIGH SPEED CAUSING FATAL INJURIES TO THE PILOT, THE ONLY OCCUPANT.  LOCAL RESIDENTS SAID THE VISIBILITY WAS NEARLY ZERO AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT.

## 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 CEN09LA597](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA597), Sep 22, 2009: Piper PA-12 (N3234M), Columbia, MO, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's continued visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which included low ceilings and fog, and his failure to maintain control of the airplane. Contributing to the accident…

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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