- Date
- May 25, 1988, 21:13 local (May 26, 1988, 01:13 UTC)
- Place
- Raleigh, NC
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 1 uninjured
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report September 19, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA reports
- 19880525016072A19880525016071A
- Case key
- 7606
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
A Piper PA-28R (lead acft, N44018) & a Cessna 172 (#2 acft, N737GU) were departing Raleigh-durham arpt on a formation flt to petersburg, VA. The Cessna plt (wingman) rprtd that drg takeoff & initial climb, the lead acft bgn to accelerate ahead of him. The Piper turned slightly rgt & leveled at aprx 1500' as the wingman tried to regain position & keep the lead acft in sight. The wingman rprtd he had difficulty seeing the lead acft with city lights in the background. The wingman's acft began 'building up momentum' & he trimmed to level off at 1500'. After the flt was cleared to contact departure control, the wingman looked away to locate & change the radio freq. As he was changing freqs, he lost sight of the lead acft. Subsequently, the Cessna converged with the Piper, but the wingman did not see it until just before his prop & nose gear hit the vertical fin & fuselage of the Piper. The Piper entered an unctld dscnt & crashed. The Cessna eng lost power, but the wingman made a successful forced lndg on rwy 32 with a failed nose gear.
Aircraft · 2
- Registration
- N44018
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28R-200
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 288435219
- Airframe hours
- 5,473
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-C1C, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Petersburg-Dinwiddie
- Registered owner
- Petersburg Dinwiddie Anv Inc.,
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- RDU
- Destination
- Petersburg, VA
- Airport
- RDU · Raleigh-Durham
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.
- Registration
- N737GU
- Reported as
- Cessna 172
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 69414
- Airframe hours
- 3,823
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Petersburg-Dinwiddie
- Registered owner
- Petersburg Dinwiddie Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 20, 1988 · 13 hours before
- Departed
- RDU
- Destination
- Petersburg, VA
- Airport
- RDU · Raleigh-Durham, runway 32, 4,498 × 100 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N44018
- Age
- 28
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,402 total
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N737GU
- Age
- 39
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 3,662 total · 159 in this make and model · 2,743 as pilot in command · 155 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 50° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 54 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RDU
FAA reports on this event · 2
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.