- Date
- November 21, 1990, 19:50 local (Nov 22, 1990, 00:50 UTC)
- Place
- Gaylord, MI
- Injuries
- 4 fatal, 2 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N9800KPiper PA-32-RT300
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report July 2, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19901121051099A
- Case key
- 14886
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance. Factors which contributed to the accident were: the dark night, adverse weather conditions, and the pilot's overconfidence in continuing VFR flight into these conditions.
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 pilot had obtained 3 weather briefings before the night flight. Forecast weather was IMC enroute and at destination, deteriorating through midnight. The pilot filed VFR to saginaw and IFR to his destination. He was not instrument-rated. The pilot broke out beneath a 600-FT overcast and attempted for the next hour to land. The airplane eventually flew into trees on an extended downwind in the landing configuration.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9800K
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32-RT300 (PA-32-RT30)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32R-7885003
- Airframe hours
- 2,600
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Larry E. Stenke
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · June 1, 1990 · 75 hours before
- Departed
- ARB · Ann Arbor, MI
- Destination
- GLR
- Flight plan
- VFR/IFR
- Airport
- GLR · Otsego County, runway 9, 5,000 × 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
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 41
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 670 total · 145 in this make and model · 40 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 220° at 15 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 600 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.70 inHg
- Observed at
- PLN, 4 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.