Piper PA-23 accident near Augusta, Georgia, January 19, 1988
On January 19, 1988 at about 2:30 am local time, a Piper PA-23, registered N101JR, was destroyed in an accident near Augusta, Georgia (Bush airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured and 3 people had minor injuries. 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
- January 19, 1988 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Augusta, Georgia · Bush
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 3 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-23 · all PA-23s on the register
- Registration
- N101JR · registry record · serial 27-7854115
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
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: 4,486 hours in all; 2,007 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 4,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,862 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 16, 1987; 55 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-C4B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Decatur AL at 1:17 am
- Destination: Augusta GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 17, 8,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 350° at 5 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.