Piper PA-32-300 accident near Perry, Georgia, October 5, 1985
On October 5, 1985, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N8831F, was destroyed in an accident near Perry, Georgia (Perry-Ft. Valley airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries. 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
- October 5, 1985
- Place
- Perry, Georgia · Perry-Ft. Valley · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N8831F · no longer on the register · serial 32-7740025
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT LANDED SHORT OF THE RWY DURING A FORCED LANDING FOLLOWING LOSS OF PWR DURING A X-COUNTRY FLT OF 2 HRS. 3 WITNESSES SAW THE ACFT BRING REFUELED BUT THE ONLY ONE WHO MENTIONED THE AMOUNT OF FUEL ADDED WAS THE REFUELER WHO SAID HE'TOPPED OFF' ALL 4 TANKS. THE FUEL RECEIPT TOTALED 57 GALS BUT IT WAS FOR TWO ACFT. ONLY 30 GALS WAS PUT IN THE ACC ACFT. THE PLT OF THE ACC FLT SAID THE FUEL GAUGES WENT TO ZERO AS HE WAS BEING VECTORED AROUND HEAVY TURBULENCE. THE ENG WAS RESTARTED AFTER A CHANGE OF FUEL TANKS BUT FAILED AGAIN AND WOULD NOT RESTART. DURING THE LANDING THE ACFT CLIPPED TREES & ELEC WIRES BEFORE CRASHING UPSIDE DOWN. INVESTIGATION AFTER THE ACC REVEALED NO FUEL ABOARD THE ACFT AND NO EVIDENCE OF SPILLAGE. NO FUEL LEAKS IN THE FUEL SYS WAS NOTED. THE PLT THINKS THE FUEL VENTED OR SYPHONED OUT OF THE TANKS.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,274 hours in all; 97 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 792 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 2, 1985; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO540K1G5D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Tuscaloosa AL
- Destination: 54A Perry GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 36, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.