- Date
- May 4, 1996, 10:30 local (17:30 UTC)
- Place
- Harper, OR
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3568DPiper PA-28-161
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 28, 1997
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19960504009339A
- Case key
- 42361
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 pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain (landing area) for a precautionary landing. A factor relating to the accident was: the pilot became ill during the flight.
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 pilot reported that while airborne, he felt ill and decided to make a precautionary landing on a dirt road. During the landing roll, the right wing collided with sage brush. The pilot was then unable to maintain directional control, and the airplane subsequently collided with a berm.
Factual narrative
On May 4, 1996, about 1030 Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-28- 161, N3568D, operated as a 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, collided with a berm during the landing roll on a dirt road, 28 miles south of Harper, Oregon. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed. The airplane was substantially damaged and the private pilot and his three passengers were not injured. The flight had originated from Nampa, Idaho, about 1 hour and 30 minutes before the accident.
The pilot reported that while in flight he experienced stomach cramps and dizziness and decided to make a precautionary landing on a dirt road. The pilot stated that after the airplane touched down, the right wing collided with a sage brush. The pilot was unable to maintain control of the airplane which subsequently collided with a berm.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3568D
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-161
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-8016205
- Airframe hours
- 2,484
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D3G, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- James R. Breuer
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 11, 1995 · 89 hours before
- Departed
- S67 · Nampa, ID
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
- 42
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 103 total · 7 in this make and model · 2 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Temperature
- 45 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.