WPR26LA132

NTSB accident investigation · Piper PA-28-140 · West Valley City, UT · March 21, 2026

Accident · No injuriesClass 3 · LimitedPreliminary report
Date
March 21, 2026, 16:10 local (22:10 UTC)
Place
West Valley City, UT
Injuries
2 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Enroute
Aircraft
N7328JPiper PA-28-140
Defining event
Enroute: Loss of engine power (partial)
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Investigation ongoing
Investigation class
Class 3
NTSB office
Western Pacific Region
Parties
FAA
FAA report
20260321007109A
Case key
202682

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

On this page

Preliminary report

What NTSB knew early in the investigation. It may change in the final report.

On March 21, 2026, about 1610 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-28-140, N7328J, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near West Valley City, Utah. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot reported that they departed from the South Valley Regional Airport, Salt Lake City, Utah (SVR) for a local flight. While returning to the departure airport, at an altitude of about 5,800 ft mean sea level (msl), the engine experienced a partial loss of power. He utilized the airplane checklist to troubleshoot the loss of engine power, however, was unable to restore engine power. Unable to maintain altitude, he elected to make an off-airport landing on an open dirt field. During the landing roll, the airplane encountered rough terrain, the nose and right landing gear collapsed, and the airplane’s right wing impacted the dirt surface. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the right wing and aileron were substantially damaged. The wreckage was recovered for further examination.

Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.

Aircraft

Registration
N7328J
Reported as
Piper PA-28-140
Category
Airplane
Serial number
28-24682
Built
1968
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Departed
SVR · Salt Lake City, UT

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.

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
330° at 8 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
25,000 ft broken
Temperature
82 °F, dew point 27 °F
Altimeter
29.92 inHg
Observed at
KSLC, 8 nm away
METAR
METAR KSLC 212154Z 33008KT 10SM FEW012 SCT190 BKN250 28/M03 A2992 RMK AO2 SLP088 FU FEW012 FU N T02781033 $

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.