- Date
- December 19, 1992, 05:05 local (10:05 UTC)
- Place
- Gaylord, MI
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N6185PPiper PA-24-180
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921219050939A
- Case key
- 15583
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-in-command exceeded the airplane's design stress limits.
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-in-command obtained a weather brief which included icing precautions. The airplane took off in night, IMC, which included freezing rain, sleet and snow falling around the airport. Ten minutes after takeoff, the airplane reported 'carb ice' and disappeared from radar. The airplane broke apart in flight. There were indications of engine power at impact and witness accounts of loud, even engine noise. No mechanical discrepancy was found.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6185P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1287
- Airframe hours
- 2,953
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- John C Myers & Clare R Colwell
- Registered owner
- John C Myers & Clare R Colwell
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 18, 1993 · 1 hours before
- Departed
- GLR
- Destination
- OI03 · St. Clairsville, OH
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,850 total · 1,500 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 170° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,600 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 32 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PLN, 35 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.