Piper PA-28-140 N4491J

Summary

On 18 April 1986 at about 00:26 local time, a Piper PA-28-140 registered N4491J, operated by Mark Murvihill, was involved in an accident near Westville, Indiana, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

18 April 1986 at 00:26

Classification

Accident

Location

Westville, Indiana, United States

Coordinates

41.5302, -86.8999

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-140

Registration

N4491J

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Mark Murvihill

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Valparaiso → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

CHI86FA122

4 people 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

THE PLT WAS TAKING A FRIEND AND TWO OF HER ACQUAINTANCES ON A SIGHTSEEING RIDE WHEN THE ACFT CRASHED INTO A PLOWED FARM FIELD. THE ACFT'S WEIGHT WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 60 LBS UNDER MAX ALLOWABLE GROSS WEIGHT AT THE TIME OF THE CRASH. A WITNESS NEAR THE CRASH STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS FLYING LOW, CLEARING A POWERLINE JUST BEFORE THE CRASH. SHE SAID THE ACFT WAS NOSE LOW AND TRAVELING AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED. INVESTIGATION REVEALED NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION. A CHECK OF THE PLT'S LOGBOOK REVEALED THAT THE PLT HAD 133.4 HOURS WITH 5.6 HOURS LOGGED IN THE PREVIOUS 12 MONTHS.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.