# Accident 20151002016669A: Piper PA-32R-301, Westminster, SC, October 2, 2015

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 2, 2015, 15:45 local time
- Place: Westminster, SC
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.5983° N, 83.1625° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.5983&lon=-83.1625&mi=10
- Aircraft: N782TM, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N782TM-2018-04-02) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32R-301 (registry code 7103218, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32r-301) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming IO-540 series (registry code 41530, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-32R-301
- Reported engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 4
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA16FA001](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA16FA001) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20151002016669A

## Narrative

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

ON OCTOBER 2, 2015, ABOUT 1512 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A PIPER PA-32R-301, N782TM, COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN FOLLOWING AN IN-FLIGHT BREAKUP NEAR WESTMINSTER, SOUTH CAROLINA.

THE PRIVATE PILOT AND THREE PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED. THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED BY THE IMPACT FORCES.

THE AIRPLANE WAS REGISTERED TO SMITH FAMILY AVIATION LLC AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91 AS A PERSONAL FLIGHT.

DAY, INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT, AND AN INSTRUMENT FLIGHT RULES (IFR) FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED.

THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM WARSAW MUNICIPAL AIRPORT (ASW), WARSAW, INDIANA AND WAS DESTINED FOR OCONEE COUNTY REGIONAL AIRPORT (CEU), CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA.

LOCAL RESIDENTS REPORTED HEARING AND SEEING THE AIRPLANE PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. ONE WITNESS HEARD A LOUD "BOOM," FOLLOWED BY WHITE PIECES OF DEBRIS FALLING INTO LAKE HARTWELL. ANOTHER WITNESS SAW THE AIRPLANE DESCENDING VERTICALLY, IN A SPIRAL MOTION, UNTIL IT DISAPPEARED BEHIND A TREE LINE.

ANOTHER WITNESS REPORTED THAT THE ENGINE WAS RUNNING UNTIL GROUND IMPACT. SEVERAL WITNESSES REPORTED THE EVENT TO 911, AND THE WRECKAGE WAS LOCATED BY FIRST RESPONDERS SHORTLY THEREAFTER.

THE MAIN WRECKAGE WAS FOUND INVERTED IN A WOODED AREA, ABOUT 50 YARDS NORTH OF THE SHORELINE OF LAKE HARTWELL, NEAR WESTMINSTER. DAMAGE TO TREES WAS INDICATIVE OF A NEAR-VERTICAL DESCENT ANGLE AT IMPACT. THERE WAS NO FIRE. THE MAIN WRECKAGE CONSISTED OF THE MAIN CABIN, COCKPIT, ENGINE, PROPELLER, LEFT WING, AND THE INBOARD HALF OF THE RIGHT WING. ABOUT 10 PERCENT OF THE EMPENNAGE WAS RECOVERED NEAR THE SOUTH SHORELINE THE LAKE, NEAR TOCCOA, GEORGIA.

THE OUTBOARD PORTION OF THE RIGHT WING AND THE REMAINDER OF THE EMPENNAGE HAVE NOT BEEN LOCATED.

THE WRECKAGE WAS RETAINED BY THE NTSB FOR FURTHER EXAMINATION.

## 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 ERA16FA001](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA16FA001), Oct 2, 2015: Piper PA32R (N782TM), Westminster, SC, destroyed, 4 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's loss of airplane control for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information.

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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