- Date
- October 23, 1985, 11:30 local (16:30 UTC)
- Place
- Hopkinsvile, KY
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8277YPiper PA-28RT-201T
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19851023052919A
- Case key
- 6998
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
The acft had electrical failure during an IFR flt and radio/radar contact was lost. The plt said he was in & out of the clouds during the final stages or the x-country flt. The cloud ceiling was about 800 ft where he finally descended & landed in a soybean field. Investigation showed that the alternator had failed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8277Y
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28RT-201T (PA-28RT-20)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28R-8131008
- Airframe hours
- 1,338
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-360-FBI, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Landmark Realty,Inc.
- Registered owner
- River City Investment Co Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 22, 1985 · 6 hours before
- Departed
- MCO · Orlando, FL
- Destination
- LOU · Louisville, KY
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 46
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 509 total · 248 in this make and model · 362 as pilot in command · 4 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 2 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 800 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- HOP, 15 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.