Piper PA28R N7430J
31 August 2018 · Kaplan, Louisiana, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 31 August 2018 at about 12:56 local time, a Piper PA28R registered N7430J, operated by Space City Aviators, was involved in an accident near Kaplan, Louisiana, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 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 12:56
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Kaplan, Louisiana, United States
- Coordinates
- 30.0389, -92.3708
- Aircraft
- Piper PA28R
- Registration
- N7430J
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 1968
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Space City Aviators
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Abbeville → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CEN18FA359
People
2 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a charted and illuminated television/radio tower.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The airline transport pilot and his daughter departed in day visual meteorological conditions with the morning sun located behind the airplane. About 10 minutes after takeoff, the airplane impacted a charted, 1,793-ft-tall television/radio tower about 200 ft below the apex of the tower. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot and his wife were in the process of divorce. The pilot's wife was very concerned after the pilot and her daughter departed without notice several weeks before the accident. The pilot had become unresponsive to phone calls from his work supervisor and had been making unauthorized purchases with his work credit card before the accident. On the day before the accident, the pilot's attorney informed the pilot that a warrant had been issued for his arrest. A direct course from the departure airport to the pilot's home airport was over 5 miles south of the tower. Although a surveillance video and witness statements indicated that the tower's lighting was erratic, the tower was adequately lit, and the visibility of the tower was not a factor in the accident.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Piper PA28R accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Jul 2018 | Piper PA28R | Santiago, Chile | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 28 Apr 2018 | Piper PA28R | Gainesville, Georgia, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 28 Feb 2018 | Piper PA28R | Milton-Freewater, Oregon, United States | Walla Walla University | No injuries | - |
| 4 Sep 2018 | Piper PA28R | Cuatro Vientos, Spain, Spain | - | No injuries | - |
| 28 Oct 2018 | Piper PA28R | Hobbs, New Mexico, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 7 Mar 2018 | Piper PA28R | Paso Robles, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Aug 2018 | Cessna 172 | Shreveport, Louisiana, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 6 Oct 2018 | Stearman A75N1(PT17) | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 8 Oct 2018 | Air Tractor AT 402 | Crowley, Louisiana, United States | Leleuxs Flying Service Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 19 Jul 2018 | Piper PA28 | Shreveport, Louisiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 20 Apr 2018 | McDonnell Douglas DC 9 83(MD-83) | Alexandria, Louisiana, United States | Caribbean Sun Airlines Inc | No injuries | - |
| 6 Feb 2018 | Piper PA 34-220T | Patterson, Louisiana, United States | Air Reldan Inc. | Serious injuries | - |