Piper PA-32-300 accident near Monroe, Wisconsin, January 19, 1983
On January 19, 1983 at about 10:25 am local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N5818F, was destroyed in an accident near Monroe, Wisconsin. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries. 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
- January 19, 1983 · about 10:25 am local time
- Place
- Monroe, Wisconsin
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N5818F · no longer on the register · serial 32-770006
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE CRUISING AT 4,000 FT MSL THE ENG QUIT. DURING A FORCED LANDING ON ROLLING FARM TERRAIN BOTH MAIN LANDING GEAR SEPARATED. THE ACFT THEN SLID THROUGH A BARBED WIRE FENCE & CAUGHT FIRE. METALLURGICAL EXAMINATION REVEALED A FATIGUE FAILURE OF THE IDLE SET SCREW THAT CONTROLS THE DIAPHRAM SETTING IN THE BENDIX FUEL INJECTION (P/N 2424273-10). THE STEMOF THE SCREW FAILED AS A RESULT OF REVERSED BENDING STRESSES CAUSED BY SIDE TO SIDE FORCES. THIS TYPE OF FAILURE COULD NOT BE EXPLAINED AS THE PRINCIPAL FORCE APPLIED TO THE ADJUSTMENT SCREW WOULD PRIMARILY BE IN A TWISTING MOTION RATHER THAN A SIDE TO SIDE APPLIED FORCE.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,225 hours in all; 152 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 2,105 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,002 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 13, 1983; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-KIG5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: ARR Aurora IL at 9:55 am
- Destination: MSP Minneapolis MN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 11,000 ft
- Temperature: 10°F (-12°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:52 am from RFD, 34 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.