DEN86FA181

NTSB accident investigation · Piper PA-28-236 · Townsend, MT · June 29, 1986

Accident · FatalField investigationFinal report
Date
June 28, 1986, 23:45 local (Jun 29, 1986, 05:45 UTC)
Place
Townsend, MT
Injuries
1 fatal
Damage
Destroyed
Phase of flight
Enroute
Aircraft
N100WXPiper PA-28-236
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
Status
Completed · report March 25, 1988
Report
Approved by Office Director
FAA report
19860628028139A
Case key
16833

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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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.

Loss of control - in flightCruise - normal
Judgment - poorPilot in commandCause
Impairment(alcohol)Pilot in commandCause
Light condition - dark nightFactor
Aircraft handling - not maintainedPilot in commandCause
Spatial disorientationPilot in commandCause
Lack of total experiencePilot in commandFactor
Lack of total experience in type operationPilot in commandFactor
Lack of recent experience in type operationPilot in commandFactor
Airframe/component/system failure/malfunctionDescent - uncontrolled
Wing,spar - overload
Design stress limits of aircraft - exceededPilot in commandCause
In flight collision with terrain/waterDescent - uncontrolled
Terrain condition - mountainous/hilly

Analysis

On 6/26/86, the plt & his wife had flown from helena, MT. To powell, WY, to visit family & relatives. On the day of the acdnt, he had consumed alcoholic beverages. Despite pleas fm his wife not to return to helena that evening, he elected to fly back. While en route, there was a catastrophic failure of the acft; the wreckage was scattered over a 1460' area. The rgt wing & both stabilators were found aprx 750' fm the main wreckage with evidence of overload failure. There was evidence of upward deformation/failure of wings & downward failure of the stabilators. Campers near the crash site rprtda moonless, cloudy ngt with thunder & lightning in the area, but no rain. Aprx 60 mi west at helena, the 2350 MDT wx was, in part: 6500' overcast, vis 15 mi. Elev of the crash site was aprx 6000'; elev of the wx stn was 3873'. The plt had only 6 hrs of ngt flying time (last ngt flt was logged on 6/29/83) & only 2.8 hrs of instrument time (last logged on 7/16/82). A check of the plt's blood showed an alcohol lvl of 0.115%.

Aircraft

Registration
N100WX
Reported as
Piper PA-28-236
Category
Airplane
Serial number
28-7911062
Airframe hours
794
Engine
Lycoming O-540-J3A5D, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Destroyed
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Jack D. Bunn
Registered owner
The Garden Spot Market, Inc.
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · March 22, 1986 · 38 hours before
Departed
POY · Powell, WY
Destination
HLN · Helena, MT

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
54
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land
Medical
Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
Seat
Left
Toxicology
Performed
Flight hours
280 total · 141 in this make and model · 227 as pilot in command · 13 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
Wind
190° at 5 knots
Visibility
15 statute miles
Temperature
61 °F, dew point 57 °F
Altimeter
29.00 inHg
Observed at
HLN, 60 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.