- Date
- July 6, 1987, 11:00 local (15:00 UTC)
- Place
- Abingdon, VA
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N19SMGrumman AA-5B
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 24, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19870706032469A
- Case key
- 11286
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
Fss advised the plt that VFR flight was not recommended due to obscured mountains along the flight route. There also were thundershowers west of the flight route. The plt said he had to leave to stay ahead of the thundershowers. He said that he would fly the valley route between bristol and roanoke, VA and then direct to his destination. The acft departed about 45 mins later and climbed to 2800 ft MSL and headed NE before radar service was terminated. About 10 mins afterwards a witness heard the acft hit a fog covered mountain about 26 miles NE of the departure arpt. The acft hit the mountain at an elevation of about 3900 ft. the glade spring VOR is on the mountain and the acft wreckage was about one-quarter mi away from it.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N19SM
- Reported as
- Grumman AA-5B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- AA5B0034
- Airframe hours
- 1,900
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4K, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Charles D. Griffard
- Registered owner
- Charles D Griffard
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- TRI · Bristol, TN
- Destination
- AGC · Pittsburgh, PA
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
- 49
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 308 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 4 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,000 ft unknown
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.