Piper PA28-140 N98094

Summary

On 25 October 2000 at about 11:17 local time, a Piper PA28-140 registered N98094 was involved in an accident near Sparta, Michigan, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 October 2000 at 11:17

Classification

Accident

Location

Sparta, Michigan, United States

Nearest airport

Sparta (8D4)

Coordinates

43.1503, -85.7009

Aircraft

Piper PA28-140

Registration

N98094

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Manassas

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

CHI01FA024

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain proper runway alignment on departure and his failure to maintain clearance from the trees. The pilot's attempted flight into known adverse weather, his lack of instrument experience, the fog, and the trees were contributing factors.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane struck trees and terrain about 300 feet left of the extended runway centerline and about 1,000 feet from the departure and of the runway during an instrument takeoff. The weather at an airport 16 miles away was recorded as 1/4 statute miles visibility with fog and a vertical visibility of 100 feet. A witness reported weather at the accident airport as less than 1/8 mile visibility about 40 minutes after the accident. The pilot had accumulated a total of about 53 hours of instrument time with 9 of those hours in actual instrument conditions. The pilot had received a weather briefing prior to the accident, and had filed an IFR flight plan but did not obtain a departure clearance for the flight. A postaccident examination of the airframe, engine, and instruments revealed no anomalies that could be associated with a preexisting condition.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.