# Accident 20240310002539A: Piper PA-32-260, Madras, OR, March 10, 2024

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 10, 2024, 15:00 local time
- Place: Madras, OR
- Airport: Madras Municipal
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.5974° N, 121.0305° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.5974&lon=-121.0305&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3264W, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3264W-2025-12-21) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32-260 (registry code 7103206, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32-260) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-540 series (registry code 41532, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-32-260
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-540 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 789 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR24FA105](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR24FA105) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20240310002539A

## Narrative

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

MARCH 10, 2024, PA32-260, ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ DEPARTED AURORA OREGON KUAO AT APPROXIMATELY 14:04 PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME AND CRASHED SOUTHEAST OF MADRAS OREGON AT APPROXIMATELY 15:02 PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME.  CRASH SITE COORDINATES 44°35’51” N, 121°1’50” W.   PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER WERE ON BOARD THE AIRCRAFT AND FATALLY INJURED.  AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED.

## 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 WPR24FA105](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR24FA105), Mar 10, 2024: Piper PA-32-260 (N3264W), Madras, OR, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s continued visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in an encounter with turbulence and structural icing conditions, loss of control, and…

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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