Piper PA-28-151 accident near Rienzi, Mississippi, August 19, 2001
On August 19, 2001 at about 8:43 am local time, a Piper PA-28-151, registered N57297, was destroyed in an accident near Rienzi, Mississippi. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot experienced spatial disorientation, which resulted in an in-flight loss of control and subsequent collision with trees and terrain. A factor was the dark night condition.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 19, 2001 · about 8:43 am local time
- Place
- Rienzi, Mississippi · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-151 · all PA-28-151s on the register
- Registration
- N57297 · no longer on the register · serial 28-7415036
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane collided with trees and terrain during a night flight that departed at 0249 central daylight time. The private pilot was recently certificated. Weather reporting facilities indicated the possibility of IFR conditions in the vicinity of the accident site about the time of the accident, and it was a moonless, dark night. GPS data retrieved from a hand-held unit recovered from the wreckage indicate nearly constant heading fluctuations throughout the flight, depicting a scalloped flight path and eventual 360-degree turn to the right at the end of the data set. Examination of the accident site showed the airplane rested in a nose-low attitude adjacent to two trees. Wreckage debris was scattered over am area approximately 70 feet land and 35 feet wide. The wreckage path was orientated on a 240 degree magnetic heading. The engine assembly was buried several inches into the ground. The empennage section was stacked on top of the cockpit and passenger sections of the airframe at the point of ground impact. Examination of the air frame and the engine assembly revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunction or a component failure.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 63 hours in all; 63 in this make and model; 6 in the last 90 days; 22 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 25, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,443 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 21, 2001; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,325 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E3D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: M97 Tunica MS at 7:49 am
- Destination: MSL Muscle Shoals AL
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 190° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,600 ft; scat at 800 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 29.92 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 am from TUP, 24 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.