Piper PA-25-250 accident near Waverly, Virginia, August 25, 1988
On August 25, 1988 at about 9:45 pm local time, a Piper PA-25-250, registered N8668L, was destroyed in an accident near Waverly, Virginia. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 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
- August 25, 1988 · about 9:45 pm local time
- Place
- Waverly, Virginia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-25-250 · all PA-25-250s on the register
- Registration
- N8668L · no longer on the register · serial 255120
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT CONTACTED PWR LINES, CRASHED AND BURNED DURING AN AERIAL APPLIATION FLT. WITNESSES REPORTED THAT IT LOOKED AS IF THE PLT DESCENDED TO FLY UNDER THE LINES WHEN IT SUDDENLY PULLED UP AND CONTACTED THEM.
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: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,474 hours in all; 122 in this make and model; 84 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days; 1,362 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (expired)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,089 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 26, 1988; 84 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-B2C5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Hummel Aviation Services, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: AKQ Wakefield VA
- Destination: Waverly VA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°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.