Piper PA-32R-300 accident near Warrens, Wisconsin, December 21, 2007
On December 21, 2007, a Piper PA-32R-300, registered N1919H, was destroyed in an accident near Warrens, Wisconsin. 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 decision by the pilot to fly into known adverse weather, and the pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane due to spatial disorientation. Contributing factors include the clouds and the night conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 21, 2007
- Place
- Warrens, Wisconsin · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32R-300 · all PA-32R-300s on the register
- Registration
- N1919H · no longer on the register · serial 32R-7780202
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The air traffic controller who was working the tower position at the departure airport reported that the accident airplane had landed at the airport. Within about 10 - 15 minutes, the pilot departed again. It was dark, and the weather was "just above" visual flight rule (VFR) minimums during the airplane's arrival and departure. The pilot did not file a flight plan. Radar track data indicated that the accident airplane flew about a 131-degree magnetic heading at about 2,500 feet mean sea level (msl) from the departure airport to the airspace near the accident site at the time associated with the accident. The radar track data indicated that the airplane was in a left, descending turn prior to being "lost" from radar contact, consistent with spatial disorientation. The post-crash inspection of the airplane revealed no preexisting anomalies. The accident site bordered an area of instrument flight rule (IFR) conditions, and was within the area with marginal VFR conditions at the time of the accident. Weather data obtained from a reporting station about 100 miles east-northeast of the accident site indicated multiple freezing levels, first at approximately 1,000 feet above ground level (agl) with temperatures below freezing to 1,500 feet, and the second freezing level at approximately 4,746 feet msl.
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: 456 hours in all; 2 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 255 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,416 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 2007
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Wisconsin Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: EAU Eau Claire WI at 11:30 pm
- Destination: RYV Watertown WI
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 150° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 1.5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 900 ft
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.86 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 pm from VOK, 19 miles away
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.