- Date
- May 30, 1983, 11:51 local (17:51 UTC)
- Place
- Horse Creek, WY
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N7079PPiper 24-180
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19830530021499A
- Case key
- 15989
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
The acft crashed in rolling terrain minus about 6 ft of its left wing. This portion of wing was found about 339 ft east of the main wreckage. Exam revealed evidence that the outboard portion of the wing separated in an upward and aft direction indicative of positive loading in flt. A toxicology rpt on the deceased plt at first repted an ethyl alcohol content of 0.38% in a liver tissue fluid sample. This was later corrected to .038%. This plt had received a weather briefings by telephone but did not file a flt plan. At 1121 the acft depted cheyenne & proceeded northwest. At 1146 the plt called cheyenne app control & said he was in clouds & wanted a vector to cheyenne', after a brief conversation the plt contacted denver ARTCC with the same message except for destination. He would now accept vectors to any place out ofthe wx. As soon as the controller gave a heading the plt radioed he was in trouble & there were no more transmissions. Radar contact was lost at 1151. A witness said the wx was overcast and 'I heard a high pitched whine....& a loud bang.'
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7079P
- Reported as
- Piper 24-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-2231
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Walter H. Kier
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 15, 1982
- Departed
- K82 · Smith Center, KS
- Destination
- PIN · Pocatello, ID
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
- 76
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 234 total · 234 in this make and model · 197 as pilot in command · 12 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,000 ft overcast
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.