Piper PA 28-236 accident near Port Orford, OR

On January 13, 2017, a Piper PA 28-236 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Port Orford, OR. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.

Date

January 13, 2017

Place

Port Orford, OR

Aircraft

Piper PA 28-236 · Airplane

Injuries

1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Substantial

Position

42.807°N, 124.532°W

NTSB ID

20170113X04821

Official records · WPR17FA052

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

Air traffic control records

• KOTH Tower Audio 1 of 2 (Recording is time-truncated to transmissions only): Audio recording (WAV), on ntsb.gov
• KOTH Tower Audio 2 of 2 (Recording is time-truncated to transmissions only): Audio recording (WAV), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn January 13, 2017, about 1125 Pacific standard time, a Piper PA28-236 airplane, N81839, impacted a beach near Port Orford, Oregon. The private pilot was fatally injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The local personal flight departed Southwest Oregon Regional Airport (OTH), North Bend, Oregon, at 1016. The pilot's son stated that earlier in the week, his father had told him he planned to fly the airplane along the Oregon coast once the weather had cleared. On the morning of the accident, having received his takeoff clearance from the OTH air traffic control tower, the pilot indicated his intention to depart to the north and fly along the coast. At 1019, about 3 minutes after takeoff, he advised being clear of the airport's Class D airspace. At 1046, he reported to OTH tower that he was 10 miles north of the airport at 1,500 ft. He requested and was granted a transition southbound along the coastline to the west, and the tower controller requested that he report crossing the extended centerline of runway 4; the pilot reported his position at 1052. The tower controller acknowledged and requested that the pilot report when he had exited the airport's airspace to the south. The pilot responded affirmative; however, by 1103, the tower controller had not received an update. The controller requested a position report, and the pilot responded,

Probable cause

The pilot's loss of vision during cruise flight, which resulted in a loss of aircraft control. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's decision to fly with a known medical condition.

More accidents in OR

• Cessna T207A, Aug 21, 1986
• Piper PA-28-180, Sep 1, 1984
• Piper PA-28RT-201, Mar 12, 1984
• Piper PA 46-310P, Apr 7, 2017
• Cessna 172, Jun 23, 2012

Browse: Oregon · Piper aircraft

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.