Piper PA-34-200T accident near Georgetown, Delaware, March 28, 1987
On March 28, 1987 at about 7:35 am local time, a Piper PA-34-200T, registered N2221E, was destroyed in an accident near Georgetown, Delaware (Georgetown Sussex County airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. 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
- March 28, 1987 · about 7:35 am local time
- Place
- Georgetown, Delaware · Georgetown Sussex County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200T · all PA-34-200Ts on the register
- Registration
- N2221E · no longer on the register · serial 347970039
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS CLEARED FOR APPROACH WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO CLOSE FLT PLAN UPON LANDING. APRX THIRTY MIN LATER APPROACH CONTROL CALLED THE FSS AND ASKED IF THE PLT HAD BEEN IN CONTACT. THE REPLY WAS NEGATIVE. NO FURTHER ACTION WAS TAKEN BY APPROACH CONTROL. WRECKAGE WAS SPOTTED THE NEXT DAY ABOUT A MILE FROM THE ARPT AND LATER IDENTIFIED AS THE MISSING ACFT. THE PILOT DID NOT HAVE A VALID MEDICAL CERTIFICATE. EXAMINATION OF THE ACFT AND ENG DID NOT REVEAL ANY DISCREPANCIES.
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
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,822 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 23, 1986; 265 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,570 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSI0-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Seaboard Air Charter,Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: WWD Wildwood NJ at 7:25 am
- Destination: GED Georgetown DE
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 070° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 300 ft; scat at 100 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:20 am from DOV, 27 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.