Piper PA-28-181 accident near Hickory, North Carolina, March 2, 1986
On March 2, 1986 at about 12:37 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-181, registered N9153K, was destroyed in an accident near Hickory, North Carolina (Hickory Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. 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
- March 2, 1986 · about 12:37 pm local time
- Place
- Hickory, North Carolina · Hickory Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-181 · all PA-28-181s on the register
- Registration
- N9153K · no longer on the register · serial 28-7690223
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING CRUISE FLT, PLT FELT ENG VIB AND DIVERTED TO NEAREST APRT. DURING THE DESCENT THE PLT HEARD AN EXPLOSION, SAW THE ENG COWL POP UP AND OIL COVERED THE WINDSCREEN. ESTABLISHED IN A GLIDE THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH TREES THEN THE GROUND. EXAM OF THE ENG REVEALED THAT CYL #2 HAD DEPARTED THE. FOUR OF THE EIGHT HOLD DOWN NUTS HAD BACKED COMPLETELY OFF OF THE STUDS. 3 STUDS WERE BROKEN AND 1 STUD PULLED OUT OF THE CRANKCASE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,375 hours in all; 473 in this make and model; 33 in the last 90 days; 1,808 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,793 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 17, 1985; 158 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CLT Charlotte NC at 11:55 am
- Destination: CRW Charleston WV
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 9°F (-13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 am from HKY, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.