- Date
- May 21, 1982, 16:20 local (21:20 UTC)
- Place
- Harrisburg, IL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2314FPiper PA-28
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 21, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 70968
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
During a weather briefing, the pilot was advised that there were thunderstorms in the area of his destination at about 1415 CDT, he departed for a two hour flight. After flying over weather most of the way and overflying an airport (hulman regional), he continued on with weather conditions that forced course and altitude deviations to remain VFR. The pilot stated that both radios and one vor/ils became inoperative at about 1550 CDT. A short time later, he saw what he thought was an airport, but was actually a drag strip with obstructions. He elected to make a precautionary landing. While landing between pylons and light poles, the pilot did not see a drag strip timer that was mounted on a 4 ft pole and was in his landing pathway. The left wing struck the timer pole, then veered and collided with a light pole.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2314F
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- PA-28-180
- Airframe hours
- 3,157
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- William C. Howell
- Registered owner
- William C. Howell
- Departed
- Danville, IL
- Destination
- Elizabethtown, KY
- Flight plan
- VFR
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 46
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 4,584 total · 282 in this make and model · 2,730 as pilot in command · 38 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 8 statute miles
- Temperature
- 176 °F