- Date
- December 10, 1985, 13:20 local (19:20 UTC)
- Place
- Topeka, KS
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4NPPiper PA-31-350
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19851210065979A
- Case key
- 34115
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
N4NP diverted from the original destination forbes field Topeka,Kansas to billard field,b NM away, due to weather. Billard ATCT advised the flight during initial contact, before N4NP reached the ILS fof, of the runway braking action. The pilot said braking was reported as nil. The ATCT also advised the flight, along with their landing clearance, that the wind was from 360 degrees at 17 knots and tower visibility was 5/8 of a mile. The controller stated that N4NP landed long and ran off the side of runway 13 near the departure end. When the aircraft entered soft terrain beside the right landing gear collapsed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4NP
- Reported as
- Piper PA-31-350
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 31-7305083
- Airframe hours
- 5,996
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540J2BD, 350 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Tri Star Transportation
- Registered owner
- John Larkin
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 30, 1985 · 40 hours before
- Departed
- ICT · Wichita, KS
- Destination
- FOE · Topeka, KS
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- TOP · Phillip Billard, runway 13, 5,099 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 36
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,705 total · 18 in this make and model · 15 as pilot in command · 25 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 11 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- 800 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 27 °F, dew point 25 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- TOP
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.