- Date
- January 13, 1991, 13:45 local (19:45 UTC)
- Place
- Marshall, IL
- Injuries
- 2 serious, 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N3212WPiper PA-32-260
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 4, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910113000399A
- Case key
- 14990
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
Flight into known adverse weather by the pilot(s) and subsequent icing of the Piper PA-32'S air induction system. Factors related to the accident were: the adverse weather conditions and a perceived sense of urgency to make the flight.
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
Plts of 2 acft planned a formation flt to take the wingman's ag acft for svc. In a wx briefing, VFR flt was not rcmdd & the plts were adzd of moderate rime & mixed icing conds in clds blo 7000'. The wingman expressed a sense of urgency to deliver his acft & the formation flt depd w/o a flt plan. En route, the flt leader (in Piper PA-32, N3212W) obtained wx info, then elected to divert to mattoon arpt. He said he elected to dscnd thru a 'scattered' cld layer & applied carb heat; however, during dscnt, the eng lost pwr. Subsequently, the acft collided with trees & crashed. The wigman rprtd that he was abt 2000' to the rgt as they penetrated the cld layer & he lost sight of the lead acft. Also, he rprtd he enctrd severe icing conds & was 'very close to the ground' when he dscndd blo the clds. The wingman's acft had no rdo; after dscndg blo clds, he could not find the lead acft. He was unsure of his location, but lndd safely after flying by a water twr at Marshall. Abt 15 mi east at terra haute, IN, the wx was in part: 1100' ovc, 5 mi vis with haze & fog.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3212W
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32-260
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32-12
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-E4B5, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Ferry · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Shelby Aviation, Inc
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 12, 1990 · 5 hours before
- Departed
- AWM · West Memphis, TN
- Destination
- HUF · Terre Haute, IN
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
- 25
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,130 total · 18 in this make and model · 1,020 as pilot in command · 115 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 180° at 20 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Temperature
- 30 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- HUF, 15 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.