- Date
- April 24, 1983, 12:07 local (20:07 UTC)
- Place
- Nome, AK
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N7346WPiper PA-28-180
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19830424015099A
- Case key
- 4064
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
At 1205 bdt, the plt reported departing rwy 20 on an IFR flt. At that time, the bases of the clouds were reported to be at aprx 600 to 700 ft with the tops at 3500 ft & another cloud layer was above that. At aprx 1207, the acft crashed on the arpt boundry, beside the west end of rwy 9/27. The impact occurred on the south bank of a snow covered, frozen river. The main wreckage came to rest on the north bank after traveling aprx 300 ft. two witnesses heard what sounded to them as aerobatic maneuvers. One witness stated that he saw the acft just below the base of the clouds heading north. According to him, the acft started a 360 deg right turn, making a steep descent during the 1st half of the turn, then a steep climb during the 2nd half. He reported that at the completion of the turn, the acft's nose dropped & the acft entered a descent & crashed. Another witness saw the plane descending before itcrashed. He thought that it had just come out of the clouds. Vacuum pump/attitude indicator examed, no malfunction found
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7346W
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-1223
- Airframe hours
- 4,746
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A3A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Wilhelm J. Schosal
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 10, 1983 · 30 hours before
- Departed
- OME · Nome, AK
- Destination
- GAL · Galena, AK
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- OME · Nome, runway 20, 5,576 × 150 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 37
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 834 total · 500 in this make and model · 672 as pilot in command · 45 in the last 90 days · 31 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 600 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 36 °F, dew point 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- OME, 75 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.