Piper PA-31-325 incident near Asheboro, North Carolina, June 2, 1982
On June 2, 1982 at about 11:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-31-325, registered N59749, suffered minor damage in an incident near Asheboro, North Carolina. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 2, 1982 · about 11:40 pm local time
- Place
- Asheboro, North Carolina · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31-325 · all PA-31-325s on the register
- Registration
- N59749 · no longer on the register · serial 31-7612017
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING CRUISE AT 5000 FT THE PILOT SMELLED ELECTRICAL FUMES AND NOTICED SMOKE FILLING THE FLAP INDICATOR GAUGE. HE PULLED THE WING FLAP CIRCUIT BREAKER BUT MOMENTS LATER VOLUMES OF SMOKE AROSE FROM UNDER THE INSTRUMENT PANEL, WITH FLAMES OBSERVED BEHIND THE PANEL. THE PILOT DIVERTED TO ASHEBORO AFTER HIS DRY CHEMICAL FIRE EXTINGUISHER PROVED INEFFECTIVE IN FIGHTING THE FIRE. THE FLAMES DIED OUT AFTER LANDING. FIRE DAMAGE WAS CONTAINED TO THE FLAP INDICATOR BUT HEAT DAMAGE PRECLUDED A DETERMINATION OF THE REASON FOR AN INTERNAL ELECTRICAL SHORT. THE FLAP INDICATOR HAD BEEN MODIFIED 216 HRS PREVIOUSLY BUT THE MOD DID NOT INVOLVE THE WIRING. THE FLAP INDICATOR IS PROTECTED BY THE STARTER CIRCUIT BREAKER. THIS INFORMATION IS INCLUDED IN THE WIRING DIAGRAMS BUT NOT IN THE DESCRIPTIONS OF THE FLAP OR ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,200 hours in all; 150 in this make and model; 300 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,883 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,500 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540-F2BD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CLT Charlotte NC at 7:15 pm
- Destination: Rocky Mount NC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 150° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 171°F (77°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:46 pm from GSO, 26 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.