Piper PA-28R-200 accident near Barnardsville, North Carolina, January 18, 1988
On January 18, 1988 at about 8:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-28R-200, registered N55WP, was destroyed in an accident near Barnardsville, North Carolina. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was 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
- January 18, 1988 · about 8:40 pm local time
- Place
- Barnardsville, North Carolina
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28R-200 · all PA-28R-200s on the register
- Registration
- N55WP · registry record · serial 28R-7635356
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 970 hours in all; 54 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 387 as pilot in command; 402 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,536 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 15, 1987; 165 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Conservair INC.
The flight
- Departed from: TCL Tuscaloosa AL at 6:30 pm
- Destination: RDU Raleigh-Durham NC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from AVL, 25 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.
Other NTSB records under N55WP the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.