Gates Learjet LR-25 incident near Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, February 9, 1983
On February 9, 1983 at about 1:55 pm local time, a Gates Learjet LR-25, registered N4PN, was involved in an incident near Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania. It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 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 incident. 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
- February 9, 1983 · about 1:55 pm local time
- Place
- Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Gates Learjet LR-25
- Registration
- N4PN · no longer on the register · serial 003
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACFT AUTOPILOT/AUTOTRIM SYSTEM FAILED TO DISENGAGE DUE TO A MALFUNCTION OF THE ENGAGE SWITCH WHICH OCCURRED ONLY IN COLD ENVIRONMENT.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 15,100 hours in all; 2,202 in this make and model; 92 in the last 90 days; 14,500 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,680 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, February 3, 1983; 9 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 15,000 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CJ 610-6 (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AVP Wilkes Barre PA at 1:45 pm
- Destination: MVN Mount Vernon IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 9 knots
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 7°F (-14°C)
- Observation at 2:00 pm from AVP, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.