Piper PA-28-180 N7012W

Summary

On 7 March 1985 at about 03:30 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N7012W was involved in an accident near Gilmer, Texas, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

7 March 1985 at 03:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Gilmer, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Gilmer-Upshur (4F4)

Coordinates

32.7304, -94.9403

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N7012W

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

FTW85FA140

1 person died.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

AN ASSOCIATE OF THE PLT/OWNER STATED THAT HE HAD DEPARTED AT ABOUT 2030 CST TO GET SOME NIGHT PRACTICE PRIOR TO GETTING A DAY VFR RESTRICTION REMOVED FROM HIS PVT LICENSE. REPORTEDLY, THE OWNER/PLT & AN INSTRUCTOR (CFI) WERE INTENDING TO FLY TOGETHER & PRACTICE TOUCH-&-GO LANDINGS. THERE WERE NO KNOWN WITNESSES TO THE ACCIDENT. THE ACFT WAS FOUND ABOUT 4 HRS AFTER IT HAD CRASHED. AN EXAM OF THE CRASH SITE REVEALED THE ACFT HAD COLLIDED WITH 70 FT TREES NEAR THE APCH END OF RWY 35. IMPACT OCCURRED IN A SLIGHT RIGHT BANK & SLIGHT NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE, AS IF THE ACFT WAS ON A BASE TO FINAL TURN, BUT TOO CLOSE IN & TOO LOW. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND DURING THE INVESTIGATION. THE CFI, WHO WAS ACTING AS A SAFETY PLT, RECEIVED SERIOUS INJURIES & HAD NO MEMORY OF WHAT OCCURRED DURING THE FLT. THERE WERE TALL TREES NEAR THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE RWY WHICH MAY HAVE OBSCURED THE RWY LIGHTS WHEN VIEWED FROM THE EAST OR SOUTHEAST.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.