- Date
- December 16, 1992, 17:45 local (Dec 17, 1992, 00:45 UTC)
- Place
- Bowman, ND
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N7243YPiper PA-30
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report October 25, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921216050809A
- Case key
- 15582
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 non instrument rated private pilot's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance after inadvertent VFR flight into instrument meteorological 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 non instrument rated private pilot/mechanic departed second in a flight of two company aircraft, travelling to an FAA mechanics seminar. The company chief pilot, in the lead airplane, reported 'shortly after takeoff, I flew into some light snow...I started to lose ground lights, so I told jared we should turn around...he said he was turning around, too.' There were no further radio transmissions from the accident airplane. The chief pilot stated it was a dark night, and deteriorating weather conditions inhibited airborne searches. The accident airplane was discovered the next morning. Postaccident examination revealed no evidence of preimpact malfunction.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7243Y
- Reported as
- Piper PA-30
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 30-268
- Airframe hours
- 4,592
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-320-B1A, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Weather Modification, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Weather Modification, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · May 22, 1992 · 70 hours before
- Departed
- D04
- Destination
- BIS · Bismarck, ND
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
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 192 total · 28 in this make and model · 140 as pilot in command · 39 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
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 N7243Y · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.