Piper PA-24-250 accident near Salisbury, Maryland, April 21, 1987
On April 21, 1987, a Piper PA-24-250, registered N5821P, was destroyed in an accident near Salisbury, Maryland (Salisbury-Wicomico County airport). It was a personal 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
- April 21, 1987
- Place
- Salisbury, Maryland · Salisbury-Wicomico County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-250 · all PA-24-250s on the register
- Registration
- N5821P · registry record · serial 24902
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ON A FLT FROM HILTON HEAD, SC TO WOODSTOWN, NJ, THE PLT ENCTRD HEADWINDS & DIVERTED TO SALISBURY, MD, A LESS DISTANT ARPT. DRG ARRIVAL AT 1944, HE WAS PROVIDED WX INFO CONCERNING A LOW CEILING & VISIBILITY. AT 1955, HE WAS INSTRUCTED TO HOLD UPON REACHING A CLNC LIMIT & WAS ADZD TO EXPECT FURTHER CLNC AT 2030. THE PLT HAD DIFFICULTY GETTING ESTABLISHEDON THE VOR RWY 5 APCH & WAS VECTORED ON FINAL APCH. AT 2046:53, ABOUT 2 MIN AFTER BEING ESTABLISHED ON THE APCH, THE PLT STATED THE ACFT RAN OUT OF FUEL & DECLARED AN EMERG. DRG AN EMERG LANDING, ABOUT 5 MI SW OF THE ARPT, THE ACFT CRASHED ON WOODED TERRAIN AFTER BEING AIRBORNE APRX 4.3 HRS.
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: 359 hours in all; 89 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 274 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,216 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 4, 1986; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-A1C5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 49J Hilton Head SC at 8:28 pm
- Destination: SBY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 5, 5,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 040° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 800 ft; scat at 500 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.