- Date
- January 5, 1988, 08:00 local (13:00 UTC)
- Place
- Salem, IN
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Unknown
- Aircraft
- N6487PPiper PA-24-250
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dawn
- Status
- Completed · report July 10, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880105001259A
- Case key
- 13909
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
N6478P crashed during a forced landing near the Salem, IN, airport. The aircraft had experienced an engine failure due to failure of the number 5 connecting rod cap bolt. The aircraft struck a tree during the approach and crashed 100 yards north of the runway.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6487P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-1606
- Airframe hours
- 15,820
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-AIA, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Herb Gossand, doing business as M & H Aircraft
- Registered owner
- Jerry B. Schamel
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 8, 1987 · 390 hours before
- Departed
- 183
- Destination
- HGR · Hagerstown, MD
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
- 31
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 2,063 total · 44 in this make and model · 1,957 as pilot in command · 95 in the last 90 days · 33 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dawn
- Wind
- 300° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 7 °F, dew point 5 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SDS, 40 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 N6487P · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.