Piper PA-28-161 accident near Greenville, South Carolina, October 12, 1987
On October 12, 1987 at about 2:26 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-161, registered N84430, was destroyed in an accident near Greenville, South Carolina (Greenville Downtown airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. 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 12, 1987 · about 2:26 pm local time
- Place
- Greenville, South Carolina · Greenville Downtown · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-161 · all PA-28-161s on the register
- Registration
- N84430 · registry record · serial 28-8216009
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLTS TRIP HOME HAD BEEN DELAYED ONE DAY DUE TO WX ENRT. HE HAD CALLED THE FSS EARLY FOR A BRIEFING AND HAD BEEN ADVISED THAT THERE SHOULD BE NO TROUBLE FOR A NOON DEPART TIME. HE DEPTD CLEMSON ABOUT 1000 AND ACTIVATED HIS VFR FLT PLAN. HE THEN CONTACTED GSP APCH CONTROL FOR CLEARANCE THROUGH THE GSP AREA. EIGHT MINUTES PRIOR TO THE MISHAP, THE PLT REQ CLEARANCE TO CLB TO 7,500 FT BECAUSE HE WAS GETTING CLOSE TO A CLOUD BANK. CLEARANCE WAS DENIED DUE TO A CESSNA 185 AT 7,500 AND WHICH WAS GOING NE. THE 185 RADIOED GSP APCH THAT HE WAS GOING BACK TO GRIFFIN BECAUSE 'IT DOESN'T LOOK TOO GOOD UP HERE NOW'. HE WAS BETWEEN LAYERS. THE PIPER WAS CLRD TO 7,500. ABOUT ONE MIN AFTER ACKNOWLEDGING THAT HE WAS AT 7,500, GSP APCH RADIOED TO THE PIPER THAT THEY OBSERVED HIM IN A LT TURN AND DESCENDING. 30 SEC LATER THE ELT ACTIVATED. THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED TO COME OUT OF THE BOTTOM OF THE OVC IN PIECES, FOLLOWING AN INFLIGHT BREAKUP.
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
- Flight time: 215 hours in all; 204 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 113 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,035 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 15, 1987; 63 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,325 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D3G (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CEU Clemson SC at 1:50 pm
- Destination: PKB Parkersburg WV
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:31 pm from GMU, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.