- Date
- August 26, 1990, 19:30 local (Aug 27, 1990, 02:30 UTC)
- Place
- Salem, OR
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8103PPiper PA-24-250
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 3, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900826036279A
- Case key
- 41124
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot allowed the design stress limits of the aircraft to be exceeded. Factors related to the accident concerned inadvertent flight by the pilot into known adverse weather conditions.
Analysis
Before takeoff, the plt was adzd of a current AIRMET for the area with precautions for ocnl MDT turbc below 14,000' & mtn obscn. Ocnl MDT rime or mixed icing was forecast for the area as well as rain shower activity. When the plt opened a VFR flt plan after takeoff, he was reminded of the precautions & AIRMET for turbc & icing. As the flt contd, the plt adzd he would be climbing to 11,500' MSL. A few min later, he adzd he would deviate from course to 'remain VFR on these clouds.' There was no further com with the acft. Witnesses on the gnd heard a loud bang, then saw the acft dscnd below the cloud layer in a spiral with pieces sepg. Wreckage was scattered over a 1/2 area. An exam revealed evidence that both outboard sections of the wings sepd upward & rearward, while the horizontal stabilator sepd downward in flt. The investigation did not verify which mode of flt the acft was in, when the in-flt breakup occurred.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8103P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-3353
- Airframe hours
- 6,870
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-A1D5, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Darrow G. Hudson
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 25, 1990 · 31 hours before
- Departed
- PDX · Portland, OR
- Destination
- 017 · Grass Valley, CA
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 53
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,072 total · 62 in this make and model · 968 as pilot in command · 24 in the last 90 days · 12 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 8,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SLE, 4 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.
Other investigations on N8103P · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.