Piper PA28R accident near Kaplan, Louisiana, August 31, 2018
On August 31, 2018 at about 12:56 pm local time, a 1968 Piper PA28R, registered N7430J, was destroyed in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Kaplan, Louisiana. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a charted and illuminated television/radio tower.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 2018 · about 12:56 pm local time
- Place
- Kaplan, Louisiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA28R 180, built 1968 · all PA28Rs on the register
- Registration
- N7430J · no longer on the register · serial 28R-30774
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airline transport pilot and his daughter departed in day visual meteorological conditions with the morning sun located behind the airplane. About 10 minutes after takeoff, the airplane impacted a charted, 1,793-ft-tall television/radio tower about 200 ft below the apex of the tower. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot and his wife were in the process of divorce. The pilot's wife was very concerned after the pilot and her daughter departed without notice several weeks before the accident. The pilot had become unresponsive to phone calls from his work supervisor and had been making unauthorized purchases with his work credit card before the accident. On the day before the accident, the pilot's attorney informed the pilot that a warrant had been issued for his arrest. A direct course from the departure airport to the pilot's home airport was over 5 miles south of the tower. Although a surveillance video and witness statements indicated that the tower's lighting was erratic, the tower was adequately lit, and the visibility of the tower was not a factor in the accident.
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
- 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 › Task performance › Planning/preparation › Flight planning/navigation › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Tower/antenna (incl guy wires) › Awareness of condition
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Tower/antenna (incl guy wires) › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 100 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
Passenger
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,980 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 18, 2018; 36 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,500 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-B1E (piston); 4,726 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: IYA Abbeville LA at 12:46 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 12:55 pm from KIYA, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
7 documents, released by the NTSB on January 10, 2020. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Photos | PDF, 6 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Wreckage Diagram | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Surveillance Video of Tower | video | View Download |
| 4 | Police Report Information | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Record of Correspondence with FAA Avp | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 6 | Toxicological Report | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 7 | Statement of Party Representatives to NTSB Investigation | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.