Piper PA-28-151 accident near Kankakee, Illinois, August 14, 1982
On August 14, 1982 at about 5:00 am local time, a Piper PA-28-151, registered N4543F, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kankakee, Illinois (Greater Kankakee airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. 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 14, 1982 · about 5:00 am local time
- Place
- Kankakee, Illinois · Greater Kankakee
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-151 · all PA-28-151s on the register
- Registration
- N4543F · no longer on the register · serial 28-7715047
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SOMETIME AFTER 2300 ON AUGUST 14, 1982, THE AIRCRAFT WAS TAKEN WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION FROM THE GREATER KANKAKEE AIRPORT. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DISCOVERED IN A NEARBY FIELD SOME 750 FEET FROM THE RUNWAY. MARKINGS ON RUNWAY 04 INDICATED THAT APPROXIMATELY 150 FEET AFTER TOUCHDOWN THE AIRCRAFT VEERED LEFT OFF THE RUNWAY, TRAVELED 581 FEET THROUGH THE GRASS, FLEW ACROSS A 47-FOOT DITCH, STRIKING THE DITCH, THEN SLID 161 FEET AND STOPPED. THE HOBBS METER INDICATED THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN OPERATED 30 MINUTES DURING THE UNAUTHORIZED USE. INJURY INDEX PRESUMED, IMPACT DAMAGE TO CABIN INTERIOR INDICATED TWO PERSONS ABOARD.
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
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,798 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 65 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,325 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E-3D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 0C4 Kankakee IL
- Destination: 0C4 Kankakee IL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 4, 5,100 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 151°F (66°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 11:55 pm from MDW, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N4543F the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.