Piper PA-24-260 accident near Norfolk, Nebraska, November 21, 2010
On November 21, 2010, a Piper PA-24-260, registered N8675P, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Norfolk, Nebraska. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s decision to continue the flight into instrumental meteorological conditions which resulted in a collision with a tree.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 21, 2010
- Place
- Norfolk, Nebraska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-260 · all PA-24-260s on the register
- Registration
- N8675P · registry record · serial 24-4123
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The non-instrument rated pilot and passenger departed on a night cross-country flight. When the airplane did not show up at its destination, a search was initiated. The following evening, the airplane wreckage was located in an open field. A local resident near the accident site reported that she saw an airplane flying really low, at night. She added, that at the time she saw the airplane, the weather was misty and cold. Around the time the witness saw the airplane, the automated weather reporting station, located about 12.5 miles from the accident site, reported a cloud ceiling at 700 feet mean sea level. The airplane collided with the top of a tree, located along a tree line that crossed the airplane's flight path. A postaccident examination did not disclose any evidence of a pre-impact mechanical malfunction. The accident information is consistent with a non-instrument rated pilot trying to fly beneath the clouds at low altitude, at night, in marginal weather conditions. Due to the night and instrument meteorological conditions the pilot most likely would not have been able to see and avoid the tree; the impact and subsequent ground collision were consistent with a controlled flight into terrain event.
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
What happened, in order
- VFR encounter with IMC during enroute (cruise)
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during enroute (cruise) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › (general) › (general) › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Ceiling/visibility/precip › Low ceiling › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 730 hours in all; 70 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: unk
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,223 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 6, 2010
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Four Wins LLC
The flight
- Departed from: 9V9 Chamberlain SD
- Destination: MLE Omaha NE
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 350° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 900 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.