- Date
- April 21, 1987, 22:21 local (Apr 22, 1987, 03:21 UTC)
- Place
- Ogden, IA
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N44626Piper PA-32-300
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report May 27, 1988
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19870421010589A
- Case key
- 34288
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 airplane was equipped for IFR flight. The pilot was not instrument rated. The pilot had been briefed earlier that VFR flight was not recommended. The pilot did not update the weather for this flight. The front of the airplane was buried seven feet in the ground. At impact, the engine was running, there was electrical power to the circuits and the rotors in the gyros were operating.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N44626
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32-300
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 327440163
- Airframe hours
- 663
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540K15, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- James C. Smith
- Registered owner
- James C Smith
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 7, 1986 · 28 hours before
- Departed
- AMW · Ames, IA
- Destination
- CIN · Carroll, IA
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
- 49
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 198 total · 175 as pilot in command · 23 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 330° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 3 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 45 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- DSM, 40 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.