- Date
- July 13, 1985, 16:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Franklin, NC
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N779VMPiper PA-28-180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850713038589A
- Case key
- 6833
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
While in cruise flt eng RPM decreased. Plt actions to recover RPM were unsuccessful and eng eventually quit. A forced landing was made to an empty fld. On roll out the acft hit a concealed ditch resulting in substantial damage. Later, exmination of the eng showed that the #3 exhaust valve had seized in a partially open position and the corresponding pushrod was broken. There was evidence that the valve had not been seated for some time with carbon buildup on the valve and valve seat.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N779VM
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-4699
- Airframe hours
- 4,338
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4A, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Over The Hill Flyers Ltc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 1, 1984
- Departed
- HSV · Huntsville, AL
- Destination
- Norfolk, VA
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
- 55
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 646 total · 122 in this make and model · 536 as pilot in command · 40 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- AVL, 45 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.
Other investigations on N779VM · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.