- Date
- June 18, 1982, 15:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Ripley, IN
- NTSB coordinates
- 35.7394, -89.5308 (estimated), outside the stated state
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N8544LPiper PA-25-235
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 18, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820618023849A
- Case key
- 72394
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
When the pilot arrived to spray the field for the first time, he saw powerlines along a road and saw poles on both sides of a creek. He assumed that all of the lines followed the road. He was unaware that a powerline crossed the narrow field that he was about to spray. The first swath run was started by crossing over a bluff. As the pilot began to spray, he saw the powerline and dove to avoid a collision. Reportedly, there was insufficient altitude to recover. The aircraft struck the ground and the gear collapsed into the wings and fuselage.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8544L
- Reported as
- Piper PA-25-235
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 25-5420
- Airframe hours
- 2,576
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-B2B5, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- J. Birchfield
- Registered owner
- J. Birchfield
- Departed
- M31 · Halls, TN
- Destination
- M31 · Halls, TN
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
- 38
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 617 total · 428 in this make and model · 474 as pilot in command · 142 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 190 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.