Accident Piper PA-23-250 N54848, Friday 25 March 1988
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Date:Friday 25 March 1988
Time:00:22 LT
Type:Silhouette image of generic PA27 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Piper PA-23-250
Owner/operator:Hansen Flying Service
Registration: N54848
MSN: 27-7554148
Total airframe hrs:3728 hours
Engine model:Lycoming IO-540-C4B5
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities:0
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category:Accident
Location:Alma, MI -   United States of America
Phase: Approach
Nature:Ferry/positioning
Departure airport:Grand Rapids, MI (GRR
Destination airport:Alma, MI (KAMN)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
DRG ARRIVAL, THE PLT WAS PROVIDED VECTORS FOR AN SDF RWY 9 APCH. NO WX RPRT WAS AVAILABLE FOR THE DESTN (ALMA), BUT THE PLT WAS ADZD THE SAGINAW WX WAS: INDEFINITE CEILING, 200' OBSCURED, VIS 1/2 MI WITH FOG, TEMP 41, DEW POINT 31, WIND 100 DEG AT 8 KTS, ALTIMETER 29.90. THE PLT RPRTD THAT AFTER HE WAS CLRD FOR THE APCH, HE DSCNDD TO THE MIN DSCNT ALT (MDA) OF 1300' MSL BY USING THE AUTO-PLT. HE STATED THAT ABOUT 1 MIN PAST THE FINAL APCH FIX, HE HEARD A 'THUMP' WHICH HE THOUGHT TO BE A PSBL BIRD STRIKE. HE SAID HE INITIATED A MISSED APCH, BUT DID NOT RECALL WHETHER HE ADDED PWR OR DISENGAGED THE AUTO-PLT. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT DSCNDD INTO TREES & CRASHED ABT 2.5 MI WEST OF THE ARPT. AN EXAM OF THE CRASH SITE REVEALED THE ACFT HAD COLLIDED WITH TREETOPS, THEN PULLED UP & CONTD OVER TREES FOR ABOUT 400' & FINALLY DSCNDD STEEPLY INTO THE WOODED AREA & CRASHED IN A RIVER. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION OF THE ACFT WAS FOUND. ELEV OF THE CRASH SITE WAS RPRTD AS 754'.

Probable Cause:

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: CHI88FA082
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 1 year and 8 months
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB CHI88FA082

History of this aircraft

Other occurrences involving this aircraft

24 March 1988 N54848 Hansen Flying Service 0 Alma, MI w/o

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
25-Mar-2024 20:54 ASN Update Bot Added

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