- Date
- October 5, 1985, 18:30 local (Oct 6, 1985, 01:30 UTC)
- Place
- Paradise, CA
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N24126Piper PA-38-112
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19851005054539A
- Case key
- 24870
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
After takeoff, for an aflight orentation, the high time (over 2 4000 flt hours) pilot descended to an altitude of approx. 300 over a lake. The pilot was then flying up a twisting arm of the lake, in mountainous terrain into unmarked electrical transmission wires that cross the lake. After the wire strike on the right elevator the aircraft reversed course rolled inverted an impacted the ground on the shore line.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N24126
- Reported as
- Piper PA-38-112
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 3879A1088
- Airframe hours
- 1,328
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 112 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Fred W. Potter
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 21, 1985
- Departed
- Q88 · Paradise, 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
- 58
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 24,108 total · 157 in this make and model · 24,000 as pilot in command · 72 in the last 90 days · 28 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MYV
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.