Piper PA-34-22OT accident near Atlanta, Georgia, July 17, 1983
On July 17, 1983 at about 2:01 pm local time, a Piper PA-34-22OT, registered N8387X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Atlanta, Georgia (Dekalb-Peachtree airport). 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 instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. 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
- July 17, 1983 · about 2:01 pm local time
- Place
- Atlanta, Georgia · Dekalb-Peachtree · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-22OT · all PA-34-22OTs on the register
- Registration
- N8387X · no longer on the register · serial 34-8133092
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS ON A TAKEOFF ROLL WHEN THE LEFT MAIN AND NOSE GEAR RETRACTED. INVESTIGATION REVEALED A FLT SWITCH FOR THE HOBBS METER HAD BEEN INSTALLED TO AUTOMATICALLY RECORD ONLY FLT TIME WHEN THE SWITCH WAS IN THE FLT POSITION. IN THIS POSTION THE HOBBS METER WAS TIED IN TO THE WEIGHT ON THE ACFT WHEELS. THE SWITCH HAD RECENTLY BEEN MODIFIED AND THIS WAS THE FIRST FLT WITH THE SWITCH IN THE FLT POSITION. DURING A TEST AFTER THE ACCIDENT THE GEAR RETRACTED IN THIS POSITION EVEN WITH THE GEAR HANDLE DOWN. NO TEST OF THE GEAR HAD BEEN MADE AFTERTHE MODIFICATION PRIOR TO RELEASE FOR FLT.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 175 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 5,700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 664 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 15, 1983; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,750 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-KB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: EWN New Bern NC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 20L, 5,001 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:00 pm from PDK, 5 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.