# Accident 20140427007769A: Piper PA-32R-300, Highmore, SD, April 27, 2014

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 27, 2014, 21:15 local time
- Place: Highmore, SD
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.3692° N, 99.4631° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.3692&lon=-99.4631&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8700E, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8700E-2015-01-16) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32R-300 (registry code 7103213, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32r-300) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming TI0-540 series (registry code 41533, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-ti0-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-32R-300
- Reported engine: LYCOMING TI0-540 SER
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 4
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 3,431 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN14FA224](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN14FA224) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20140427007769A

## Narrative

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

ON APRIL 27, 2014, AT 2116 CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME, A PIPER PA-32R-300 AIRPLANE, N8700E, WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT IMPACTED THE BLADE OF A WIND TURBINE 11 MILES SOUTH OF HIGHMORE, SOUTH DAKOTA. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT AND THREE PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED. THE AIRPLANE WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY A PRIVATE INDIVIDUAL UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 91 AS A PERSONAL FLIGHT. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM HEREFORD MUNICIPAL AIRPORT (KHRX), HEREFORD, TEXAS, APPROXIMATELY 1700.

## 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 CEN14FA224](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN14FA224), Apr 28, 2014: Piper PA 32R-300 (N8700E), Highmore, SD, destroyed, 4 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's decision to continue the flight into known deteriorating weather conditions at a low altitude and his subsequent failure to remain clear of an unlit wind turbine. Contributing to the…

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.