Piper PA-32-300 N2881W
2 October 1996 · Brandywine, Maryland, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 2 October 1996 at about 15:12 local time, a Piper PA-32-300 registered N2881W was involved in an accident near Brandywine, Maryland, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 15:12
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Brandywine, Maryland, United States
- Nearest airport
- Washington Exec-Hyde Arpt (W32)
- Coordinates
- 38.6895, -76.8507
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300
- Registration
- N2881W
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Somerville → Clinton
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- IMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- IAD97FA001
People
3 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
The pilots failure to maintain his assigned altitude in IFR conditions. A related factor was the failure of the radar controller to prevent the descent of N2881W to an altitude below the minimum vectoring altitude. Additionally, the controller's failure to issue a safety alert after the MSAW issued 4 warnings in the radar room.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot was receiving vectors from air traffic control for a visual approach to Hyde Field Airport. The pilot was in instrument meteorological conditions and attempting to acquire visual meteorological conditions to conduct the landing. The last assigned altitude given to the pilot by ATC was 1600 feet, which was the minimum vectoring altitude for that area. The pilot radioed ATC and informed them that he was descending to 1000 feet. ATC did not respond to the pilot's radio call. The airplane descended to 1000 feet, circled 360 degrees and had almost completed a second circle when it was lost off radar. The last recorded altitude was 800 feet, the airplane subsequently descended into the terrain with no warning provided by ATC.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Piper PA-32 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Aug 1996 | Piper PA-32-300 | Crystal Lake, Illinois, United States | Northwest Flyers, Inc. | Serious injuries | - |
| 21 Jan 1996 | Piper PA-32-260 | Spicewood, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 9 Aug 1996 | Piper PA-32-260 | Gaithersburg, Maryland, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Jun 1996 | Piper PA-32-300 | Gustavus, Alaska, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 20 May 1996 | Piper PA-32 | Jacksonville, Florida, United States | Roger C. Doerr | Serious injuries | - |
| 31 Aug 1996 | Piper PA-32 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | - | No injuries | - |
All 1,695 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Jul 1996 | Piper PA-38-112 | Salisbury, Maryland, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 13 Jul 1996 | Quicksilver SPRINT | Mt Airy, Maryland, United States | John F Harrison | Fatal | 1 |
| 14 Jul 1996 | Cessna 172 | Frederick, Maryland, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 25 Jul 1996 | Cessna 172 RG | Union Bridge, Maryland, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 23 Aug 1996 | American AA-5 | Annapolis, Maryland, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 24 Aug 1996 | Aeronca 7AC | Frederick, Maryland, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |