Piper PA-30 accident near Sparta, Tennessee, December 30, 1984
On December 30, 1984 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-30, registered N7589Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sparta, Tennessee. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 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
- December 30, 1984 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Sparta, Tennessee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-30 · all PA-30s on the register
- Registration
- N7589Y · no longer on the register · serial 30-656
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DUAL ENGINE STOPPAGE. FUEL TANKS TOPPED BEFORE TAKEOFF. PLT HAD FILED IFR EN ROUTE BUT THE WIND HAD SHIFTED TO A 30 KT HEADWIND. PLT BECAME CONCERNED ABOUT FUEL REMAINING AND MADE AN INSTRUMENT APCH WHICH WAS MISSED BECAUSE OF LOW CLOUDS. DURING COURSE TO AN ALTERNATE, THE LEFT ENGINE QUIT. DURING VECTORS TO THE NEAREST AIRPORT THE RIGHT ENGINE QUIT, AND SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TREES DURING A FORCED LANDING. THE PLT SAID THE ENGINE STOPPAGE SOUNDED LIKE FUEL STARVATION.
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: 1,137 hours in all; 194 in this make and model; 52 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 20, 1984
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-320-BIA (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ROC Rochester NY
- Destination: BNA Nashville TN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,800 ft; scat at 400 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:37 pm from CSV, 23 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.