- Date
- May 27, 1982, 18:15 local (May 28, 1982, 01:15 UTC)
- Place
- Apple Valley, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N6503PPiper PA-24-250
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 27, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19820527021339A
- Case key
- 69799
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
During a flight from saint george, ut to imperial, GA, the pilot encountered fog as he approached el cajon pass, south of Apple Valley, CA. He attempted to go under the fog but was unable. He reversed course and headed back toward Apple Valley. As he was proceeding back to Apple Valley, the engine began losing power. The aircraft was damaged during a landing on level, rough, desert terrain. After the aircraft came to a stop, the engine was still running and the pilot shut it down, reportedly, the left and right fuel tanks had 10 and 5 gallons of fuel remaining, respectively. A examination of the engine revealed no discrepancies.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6503P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-1624
- Airframe hours
- 2,574
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-A1C5, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- William J. Lawson
- Registered owner
- William J. Lawson
- Departed
- Saint George, UT
- Destination
- Imperial, CA
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
- 70
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 6,000 total · 4,200 in this make and model · 12 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 135° at 35 knots
- Visibility
- 25 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.